Campaign by top academic

Marks and Spencer has become the first supermarket to axe the name Midget Gems from the popular sweets over concerns that it could cause offence. The sweets have now been rebranded following an ongoing campaign by a disability academic, Dr Erin Pritchard of Liverpool Hope University.

The academic has been calling on supermarkets and confectionery makers to change the name. M&S has now rebranded the sweets as “mini gems”. Dr Pritchard, a lecturer in disability and education, raised concerns to the chain over the use of the word “midget” which is seen as derogatory for people with dwarfism. She is also campaigning for other supermarkets and confectionery makers to follow M&S’s lead. Dr Pritchard who has achondroplasia, a condition which stunts growth, said: “The word ‘midget’ is a form of hate speech and contributes to the prejudice that people with dwarfism experience on a daily basis.

“We need better awareness about this particular word so that things can change for the better. And 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 had to put up with cruel and very nasty jibes from strangers mocking her four foot height.

She said: “Often referred to by people with dwarfism as the mword, it is a term derived from the word ‘midge’, meaning gnat or sandfly. Its origin automatically dehumanises people like me. It was a term popularised during the Victorian freak show, where many disabled people, including people with dwarfism, were oppressed and exploited. It was where people with bodies that exceeded normal expectations were put on display for others to stare at and often mock,” she added.