[Northern Monkey]

group of Morris Dancers were forced to abandon a performance after they were accused of being racist and threatened over their traditional black face paint, it has been claimed.

The Alvechurch group were heckled by a handful of onlookers during performances on two city centre streets near the Bullring in Birmingham on Saturday, witnesses said.

The dancers were one of more than a dozen groups who were there to celebrate Plough Monday, the traditional start of the agricultural year.

They arrived at 11am and had performed without incident in pubs, to groups of local and visiting football fans and to the majority of shoppers.

But a source close to the group said: "The atmosphere had been great with the vast majority of people, but I was absolutely amazed by the vitriolic abuse they started to receive.

"The issues began when they started dancing near to the Bull outside the Bullring and later near to Marks & Spencer. They were roundly abused and threatened with violence.

"One lady was particularly angry and a group of young men started to become very abusive and confrontational, accusing them of being racists, which of course they are not.

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