Dog gravestone branded racist is now in storage

A FRESH row has broken out over the gravestone of a dog with a racist name.

Until earlier this year, the marker, bearing the N-word, had been in place at Coombe Abbey Park before being removed by Coventry City Council officials.

It had been in situ since 1902 but, following an outcry, the authority deemed the name “not appropriate” for the current age. Mystery had clouded its whereabouts since it was taken down on June 9 this year but the local authority has now said it is in storage and its future will be decided in consultation with Historic England.

A national revisiting of statues and monuments with racial connotations is taking place in light of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement, which has led to a wave of protests on both sides of the Atlantic. The weatherbeaten stone, which had stood in a pet cemetery by the side of Coombe Abbey Hotel, attracted controversy last summer after offending a visitor to the country park.

It was engraved with a racial slur, which is believed to have been a popular pet name at the time.

A park user, who gave his name as Nathan, said the offensive N-word should not have been displayed publicly. However, the marker remained in place until being removed as the BLM campaigng sweptp across the US and UK earlier in the summer.mmer.

This weekk it emerged that the stone is in “safefe storage” at Coombe Abbey Park, with the council planning to work with the public body on its future, accord-ing to a responsese from the localocal authority to a requestequest under the Freedomeedom of Information Act.t

The presence of the headstone in storage has drawn sharply divided opinion.

Nathan believes it should be preserved for future years as a reminder of a shameful side to Britain’s past. He said: “I agree that racism and slavery are part of Britain’s legacy.

“I think an exhibition on how the owners of British stately homes were often involved with the transatlantic slave trade would be an appropriate place for it to be exhibited.

“It would show it within the correct context to show that in America the word was being used whilst black people were being lynched and burnt alive in the street whilst the average British person was so far removed from the horrors that their empire created they thought it something ‘cute’ and appropriate to name their pet.”

Conversely, a 54-yearold Coventry resident, who asked not to be named, has campaigned for the pet grave to be reinstated. The weekly visitor to the park has made repeated representations to the council and launched a Change.org petition to have the memorial put back in place.

The online campaign was taken down because it contained the offensive word in question.

The man said: “Personally I think that this has nothing to do with racism and everything to do with political correctness gone mad. I would also suggest that the vast majority of black people are not at all offended by the dog’s headstone and that it was removed simply because people in authority now fear that they may be called out as racist.

“When the dog’s owner named their pet a hundred and eighteen years ago, they did not set out to offend or be racist, it was simply a dog’s name and a muchloved dog at that.

“The petition was on its way to two hundred signatures when it was taken down, which may not sound much until you realise that it took a single complaint to get it removed.

“I fear that political correctness is taking over and when petition websites remove your page that speaks volumes to me. Kings and queens of the past will be turning in their graves seeing what is becoming of this once great country.”

A spokesman for Coventry City Council said: “We can confirm the historical gravestone in memory of a loved pet was removed.

“Our stance on racism is clear and although the gravestone was from another time it is not appropriate today.” A spokesmanspo for Historhistoric England said he would chcheck with the llocal team about any plans for the grave and referred to the charity’s policy on ‘contested hheritage’. Tthis states: “We believe the best way to approach statues and sites which hhave become contested is not to remove them but to provide thoughtful, longlasting and powerful reinterpretation, which keeps the structure’s physical context but can add new layers of meaning, allowing us all to develop a deeper understanding of our often difficult past.

“When challenging subjects like this arise we think it’s important to open up the conversation.

“We would welcome open discussions with local councils and communities about these issues.”