A man has appeared in court after allegedly singing in the face of a black colleague while dressed up as a minstrel.
Brian Davies has been convicted of racially aggravated behaviour at a court in Cardiff, having caused his colleague alarm, distress and offence as the result of his use of 'blackface' at a work Christmas party.
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Robert Reid, prosecuting, said Davies, 62, was referencing a character from the long-cancelled Black and White Minstrel Show with his appearance, and had insisted that catering manager Loretta Dayley attend the event on 19 December 2018 - trying to counter her initial reluctance to go by telling her he had a present for her.
Reid said: "At the Christmas outing he retired briefly before returning, dressed as a black and white minstrel from a television show, and he sang a number of lines from that show, paying attention to Ms Dayley."
Footage of what happened at the Christmas party for staff at the Priory healthcare group - which was held in Coopers Carvery in Cardiff - was played in court.
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Justice of the Peace Ken Horseman said: "We have seen the footage and we find it to be abusive."
The clip showed Davies with his face painted black, wearing a boater hat and white shirt and apparently singing at Dayley.
While at first Dayley can be seen laughing along with her fellow colleagues, she has said the incident left her 'distressed'.
Telling the court via video link the incident had left her feeling 'humiliated', Dayley also said she had been off work and was receiving medication.
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Addressing Davies, she said: "Everyone was laughing - laughing at me because your actions were directed at me.
"You were mocking me. You sang 'Mammy'. You didn't sing an ordinary song, you sang a racist song from The Black and White Minstrel Show."
Davies, meanwhile, said the thought 'never crossed my mind' when asked whether or not his actions were racist, adding: "I thought she was laughing to start with. I didn't know she was upset by it."
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He also said the idea for the outfit had been prompted by discussions about old television shows, which was when The Black and White Minstrel Show had been mentioned.
"I'm not saying she used to like it but that she just used to watch it," he continued, saying his mother and father used to enjoy the show, which ran from the 1950s to the 1970s.
Davies added that Dayley was a 'dear friend' with whom he had always gotten along.
The Black and White Minstrel Show was a variety show that first aired on the BBC in 1958, and went on to be cancelled in 1978 after coming under fire from civil rights groups due to its use of blackface, having been accused of ethnic stereotyping and racism.
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One edition of the show featured a performance of 'Mammy', a song previously performed by Al Jolson - wearing blackface - in the the 1927 movie The Jazz Singer.
Topics: UK News