Monday, November 04, 2019



'Little White Town' in Devon changes signposts over claims of racism

With rows of tiny houses bleached by the sea, Bideford in North Devon has been known as 'The Little White Town’ for more than 150 years.

Yet the longstanding nickname is now under threat over complaints it could be seen as a “racist slur”.

The original tagline was given by the author Charles Kingsley, who wrote of "the little white town of Bideford” in his swashbuckling 1855 novel Westward Ho!

The name stuck, and for decades has appeared on signposts outside the town.

At a council meeting earlier this month, however, a motion was heard to remove the tagline completely. Tabled by Conservative group leader Dermot McGeough, the motion read: “Following a number of complaints from parishioners, I propose that the words 'Little White Town' are removed from all signs within the town and at the town entrances.

"The wording 'Little White Town' can be perceived as causing a racist slur and not politically correct.  Therefore this issue should be rectified immediately. "If this wording is not removed, the town council could be classed as a racist white supremacist."

The idea provoked a lively discussion, with some members of Bideford Town Council describing it as “political correctness gone mad”, but eventually a compromise was agreed.

To clear up any confusion, every signpost will now read: “Charles Kingsley's Little White Town (1855)”.

SOURCE  


5 comments:

Anonymous said...

More Politically Correct nonsense !

Bird of Paradise said...

No Common Sense their all worried over this racsism nonsense all worried of offending someone what they need is some Common Sense to sink in

Anonymous said...


Good compromise though, providing a reference since the current generation is so completely culturally illiterate, especially the ones who call things "cultural appropriation" since that's exactly how cultures grow, thrive and influence each other.

Stan B said...

This is what happens to a people bereft of their own historical context, with no knowledge of their own culture. I blame the education system.

Spurwing Plover the angry Shorebird said...

This is getting rediculous and stupid it seems everything offends the pathetic little whimps and sissies