Grays pub that displayed golly dolls closes after supplier boycott

A pub has closed for business a month after its collection of golly dolls was seized by police.

Five Essex Police officers removed the offensive dolls from behind the bar at the White Hart Inn, Grays, following a hate crime allegation.

Heineken and Carlsberg have told the pub to stop serving its lager, while maintenance company Innserve refused to continue working on site.

The pub's leaseholders closed the doors to customers on Monday night.

In an interview with Thurrock Nub News, co-leaseholder Benice Ryley cited opposition from the Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) and the suppliers, and said: "I've had enough."

The police seized the dolls on 4 April and the building was vandalised with white paint and had its windows damaged on 16 April.

Camra removed the pub from its Good Beer Guide and also removed the Pub of the Year awards on display.

Mrs Ryley said the collection of about 30 dolls were donated by her late aunt and from customers, and had been in the pub for nearly 10 years.

"If they don't like it, they don't have to come through the door," she told the BBC last month.

A Heineken UK spokesperson said it told the pub on 20 April to stop serving its beer, and that it would stop supplying materials such as glasses, and said in a statement: "After being made aware of the abhorrent display feature in the White Hart Inn, we advised the pub owners that we want nothing more to do with them.

"They go against everything we stand for.

"We believe pubs should be places of inclusivity and respect for all people, regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion or gender."

Camra national chairman Nik Antona said on Wednesday: "We believe pubs are for everyone - there is never a place for discrimination."

A spokesperson for Carlsberg Marston's Brewing Company said the company believed pubs should be "an enjoyable place for everyone".

"Whilst we do not directly supply the pub in question, after being made aware of the police investigation we contacted our third-party distributor to make our views clear," they said."We believe that all venues that serve the public, including pubs, should be inclusive and welcoming to everyone, regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion or gender.

James Knight, managing director of Innserve, said: "We take matters of equality and diversity seriously and we are committed to promoting a safe and inclusive working environment for all our colleagues.

"Hence, we have taken the decision to terminate our services to the outlet in question."

An Essex Police spokesperson said: "At this stage our investigation is still ongoing."

Mrs Ryley declined to comment when contacted by the BBC and said she preferred to wait until police speak to her husband and fellow licensee, Chris Ryley, later this month.

He is currently abroad.

Admiral Taverns, the company which owns the pub building, said: "The licensees have made us aware of their decision to leave the pub.

"We will be looking to reopen the pub under the management of new licensees."

The dolls are thought to date back to minstrel entertainment shows, when typically white actors painted their faces black and depicted negative stereotypes of black people.

It became a fictional character that appeared in books from Florence Kate Upton in the late 19th Century.

The name for the dolls has since been used as a racial slur.

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