M&S removes ‘midget’ from gems brand to avoid offending dwarfs

In a move aimed at avoiding offending people with dwarfism, Marks & Spencer has changed the name of the favourite childhood sweet Midget Gems.

 

After a leading disability studies academic warned that the word can be "highly problematic", the retailer has rebranded the sweets as 'Mini Gems'. Dr Erin Pritchard, who herself has achondroplasia - the most common form of dwarfism, condemned the term "midget" as a form of hate speech that is an insult to people with dwarfism.

 

The academic, of Liverpool Hope University, has criticised other UK retailers, including Tesco, for continuing to use the word. She said: "The word 'midget' is a form of hate speech and contributes to the prejudice that people with dwarfism experience on a daily basis. Having spoken with various firms about the use of the word 'midget', it's clear that many are simply unaware of just how offensive the term is, and I've had to explain to them why it's such an issue. "I'm grateful that M&S has been willing to listen to the concerns of people with dwarfism and has gone ahead with the rebranding."

 

Dr Pritchard has also called for other products that use the term "midget" to be rebranded, and has asked Amazon to remove novelty items that use the word - such as "I Love Midgets" key rings and T-shirts, stating: "It's offensive and unacceptable to disabled people." She acknowledged it would be impossible to rename products no longer in production, such as the MG Midget or the Daihatsu Midget mini van.

 

An spokesman for M&S said: "We are committed to being an inclusive retailer. Following suggestions from our colleagues and the insights shared by Dr Erin Pritchard, we introduced new mini gem packaging last year, now rolled out to all of our stores." The vegan-friendly firm Free From Fellows, whose products are stocked in Sainsbury's, Morrisons, WH Smith and Boots, will also drop the word midget. They said: "After being contacted about Dr Pritchard's views, a Tesco spokesman said: "We would not want any of our products to cause offence. We are grateful to Dr Pritchard for bringing this to our attention and we will be reviewing the name of this product."

 

Other products that have recently been tweaked to become more inclusive include Uncle Ben's rice, which became Ben's Original and removed the image of a black man from its packaging. Waitrose changed the name of its Kaffir dried lime leaves to Makrut Lime Leaves after complaints of racist connotations, and Nestlé removed the "not for girls" branding on its Yorkie bars after complaints.