By Associated Press
A children’s book written by British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has been withdrawn from sale after it was criticised for causing offense to First Nation Australians.
The Guardian newspaper reported Saturday that the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education Corporation blasted “Billy And The Epic Escape,” which was published earlier this year.
The group criticized one of the subplots of the book, which tells the story of a First Nations girl living in foster care, for contributing to the “erasure, trivialisation, and stereotyping of First Nations peoples and experiences.”
In a statement, Oliver, 49, said he was “devastated” to have caused offense and apologized “wholeheartedly.”
“It was never my intention to misinterpret this deeply painful issue,” he said. “Together with my publishers we have decided to withdraw the book from sale.”
First Nation campaigners were particularly aghast that neither Oliver nor his publishers, Penguin Random House,
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