A Labour-led council has pulled funding from a morris dancing group following allegations of “blackface” after they wore grey face paint to a local event. Members of Sandbach Town Council in Cheshire voted to remove £6,000 of funding previously allocated to the local Day of Dance after outcry at members of the public donning face paint while competing for the coveted Sandbach stick at the celebratory morris dancing festival.
Morris dancers historically wore black soot on their faces, supposedly as a disguise so they could beg for money without being identified. But groups taking part in the Day of Dance, which was first held in 2010, have largely ditched the tradition. The future of the event now hangs in the balance, however, after councillor Sandrene Wright brought a motion to cut its funding, citing a lack of “inclusivity”.
“Saying it was grey, not black, is just semantics,” she said, according to the Daily Mail. “I didn’t believe it was inclusive. They haven’t followed the council’s rules or diversity policy.”
Mayor John Arnold also apologised to members at a council meeting for funding the event, which he said had made “some people very offended”.
“As mayor, I would like to apologise to those people,” he said. “Sandbach Town Council did not organise this event but we did fund it. We will endeavour to improve our policies and processes to better ensure that events supported by this council are inclusive to all in the future.”
However, residents and members of the Day of Dance committee have responded to allegations of “blackface” with outrage.
“To date, there have been no negative comments made on the Sandbach Day of Dance Facebook page,” a spokesperson said in a post shared on social media.
“[We] are very disappointed by the behaviour of some councillors and seemingly personal agendas to get the funding removed. The support we have received in favour of the Day of Dance clearly demonstrates [that] some councillors are not representative of their Sandbach constituents.”
“It’s totally unbelievable that a day of such fun and joy can be turned into a complete council fiasco,” one local said.
“I was and still remain absolutely appalled at how the council handled this matter,” another added. “I hope the Day of Dance continues for many a year, traditional and atmospheric and fun, which seems to be frowned on by some.”
Sandbach Town Council has been contacted for comment.