A seaside café has come under fire for selling golly dolls just weeks after authorities raided a pub and launched an investigation for hate crime, only for the landlady to put them back on display.
The Old Manor Cafe in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, was branded "racially divisive and antisocial" by a customer who spotted the racist dolls on display.
Golly dolls were created by Florence Kate Upton in 1895 and over the years, they have been accepted as deeply offensive to Black communities.
A person who visited the Old Manor Cafe said they were "shocked" to see the dolls on display and available for purchase, reports the Daily Star.
They said: "We recently dropped in for a bite to eat and were shocked to find these openly on show and available for purchase.
"These racially stereotypical caricatures have been morally unacceptable in this country for years, but not in Norfolk, it would appear.
"They are racially divisive and antisocial."
The manager said no customer had complained to him personally before admitting that two people had complained to another member of staff about the racist merchandise last year.
He claimed he sells "hundreds of them" and added that customers who complain are "not seeing the whole picture".
He said: "For starters, they're called gollies. But it's ok for people to complain about them. It is their right.
"But people aren't complaining about the other things I have on display. They're not seeing the whole picture."
He added: "I sold 12 of them to a Black bloke from Brixton, and he superglued them all to his dashboard. He loved them."
The cafe also stocks feature figurines including Betty Boop and Great Yarmouth fishermen.
It comes after a pub landlady defied authorities and put more offensive dolls on display days after police seized 20 of them as part of an investigation into a hate crime.
Benice Ryley runs The White Hart Inn, in Grays, Essex, where they have long displayed a collection of the dolls - claiming they had been gifts from customers over the years.
On April 4, five officers arrived at the pub following reports of a hate crime at the property and took away 20 of the dolls that were displayed behind the bar.
Ms Ryley has run the pub for the last 17 years with her husband Chris and claims to "pride ourselves on welcoming everybody".
However, she has since said she owns more Gollies and has placed some of the ones that were not confiscated onto the shelves.
She also put a sign on the door of the pub saying: "We have golly dolls displayed inside on our shelves. If you feel offended. Please do not enter."
The Mirror has contacted Essex Police for an update on the investigation.
