British pub closes after losing beer suppliers over blackface doll display

British pub closes after controversy over display of blackface dolls - The Washington Post

British police investigating an alleged hate crime at a pub in Essex in early April found a collection of “golly dolls,” smiling children’s dolls with blackface from the early 20th century that are now widely criticized as racist caricatures, on display inside.

A storm of controversy followed. Benice Ryley, who owns the pub with her husband Christopher, vowed to replace the dolls in an interview with the Guardian. Essex police opened a second investigation weeks later after the pub was vandalized and graffitied overnight.

Then the fallout grew. A British consumer organization removed the White Hart from its listing of pubs, and Heineken and Carlsberg began a boycott of the pub. The White Hart closed on Tuesday, the Thurrock Nub News reported, as its owners continued to deny that their collection was offensive.

“I’ve had very very much support from many people about the gollies,” Ryley said. “We’ve had a few bits of hate which I personally don’t understand because it’s part of our life.”

An Essex police spokesperson told The Washington Post that the investigations into both the alleged hate crime and the vandalism at the pub are ongoing and that the dolls remain in police custody.

Christopher and Benice Ryley did not respond to requests for comment.

The dolls are a symbol of offensive caricatures of Black people that have nevertheless endured in the United Kingdom, according to Ferris State University’s Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia. They originated in a 1895 picture book drawn by an English author, and their likeness of a childish doll with jet-black skin and red lips imitated American minstrel dolls that stereotyped Black people.

The books and the cartoon image of the dolls became prolific in Europe, according to the university. Golly dolls became a popular children’s toy in the 20th century, and their imagery was placed on pendant chains, food packaging and clothing. An online market for golly dolls and their memorabilia persists today.

“When I was a child, my auntie bought me some,” Ryley told the Thurrock Nub News about her collection of golly dolls. “All them people in the pub, most of them have bought me a doll.”

“Young people these days don’t understand from years ago where did the gollies originate from,” she added. “That’s such a shame.”

The dolls have remained a lightning rod for controversy in the U.K. — politicians have courted outrage by posing in photos with golly dolls and shopkeepers have defended stocking them in stores. A Welsh man was fined for displaying a doll in a window opposite two Indian restaurants, the BBC reported in 2018.

The White Hart had previously been subject to a complaint about its dolls in 2018, according to the Guardian, but no action was taken. Pressure mounted on the pub in April after police received the complaint about the patron’s February visit and opened a hate-crime investigation.

After the dolls were seized, Ryley told the Guardian that supporters had donated several replacement dolls and that she intended to display them again.

Upon announcing the pub’s closure in May, Ryley told the Thurrock Nub News that Heineken, Carlsberg and Innserve, a drinks-dispensing service, had informed the pub that they were cutting ties because of the dolls.

Carlsberg and Innserve confirmed their boycotts to The Post. Heineken did not respond to a request for comment but told the Guardian that it ended the business relationship after learning of the “abhorrent display.”

Thurrock Thub News reported that the mood was festive on the bar’s closing night. Ryley told the paper she was “gutted” to close what she called a historic and well-liked neighborhood haunt. She added that she wanted her collection returned.

“That’s my collection,” she said. “They’re antiques, some of them. I want them back.”