Thousands of people have signed a counter-petition to keep a pub’s “offensive” name after a rebrand was announced.
The Midget, a Greene King pub in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, was first subject of a petition signed by more than 1,300 people calling on the brewery franchise to “recognise the offence of the term and its implications” of the pub’s name.
The name comes from the iconic MG car which was built in the car company’s former factory in Abingdon.
Last week, Greene King said it would rename the pub The Roaring Raindrop in tribute to the last ever land speed record-breaking car produced by MG.
But some locals have objected with more than 2,800 people signing a counter-petition calling on the brewery to reverse the plans to rebrand.
“I’m sure a lot of people will disagree with this decision [to rename the pub] and in my opinion I think it is ridiculous,” the counter-petition’s creator Joe Lawlor wrote. “The naming is part of Abingdon’s history.”
Dr Erin Pritchard, who started the petition to change the pub’s original name, wrote that the name “The Midget” was a term “popularised during the Victorian freak show, but unfortunately continues to be used as a form of hate speech towards people with dwarfism”.
She later added: “It is good to see that Greene King is open to addressing concerns about disablist hate speech. The term midget is a form of disablist hate speech, which I and most other people with dwarfism, have experienced as a form of bullying, including it having it shouted at us by strangers.
“It is a term that should be consigned to the history books.”
Zoe Bowley, the managing director of Greene King pubs, said the company had thought “long and hard” about rebranding, and that it was grateful for Dr Pritchard raising awareness of the offence the term can cause.
“We hope that making the change in this way helps to preserve our pub’s historic links to Abingdon’s past while simultaneously ensuring our pub can be a place where everyone feels welcome,” she added.
The pub was originally called The Magic Midget after its opening in 1974 - the nickname of the car which broke the world land speed record in 1932. It was renamed to The Midget in 2002.
MG cars were produced in Abingdon from 1929 until the factory’s closure in 1980.
