A petition to stop a ‘freak show’ dissection exhibition is nearing 10,000 signatures.
The petition calls on ITAE Productions to cancel its ‘dinner and dissection’ exhibition and ‘stop the exploitation of people with disabilities’.
They are aiming to prevent the exhibition from taking place as part of the show involves a replica of Joseph Merrick, known as the Elephant Man, being dissected in front of a live audience.
Among those opposing the show is actor and broadcaster Adam Pearson. He told the BBC that Joseph Merrick would be ‘righteously angry and completely heartbroken’ about the exhibition.
Pearson said, ‘In a hundred years time is it going to be me that’s on that table being put on show, and if not me then who?
‘Who’s going to be the next disabled person that they’re going to pretend to dissect for shiggles and profit?’
The ‘Dinner and Dissection’ exhibition is being hosted by former secondary school teacher Sam Piri, who secured a £90,000 investment for his business on the BBC programme Dragon’s Den.
Piri still intends to go ahead with the exhibition despite the petition, arguing it is an ‘educational’ event.
He told the BBC, ‘I understand that people might find it distasteful and we’re not saying that’s not a thing but I don’t think that should be the grounds for censoring a true story that happened in British history and teaching people about it from an academic perspective.’
If you’d like to sign the petition you can view it here.
If you have a story you want to tell, send it to UNILAD via [email protected]
Topics: News
