Post by ladylinda on Aug 7, 2016 17:26:05 GMT -5
(A post by Shay Clipson - the only Romany magistrate in Britain)
I’m meeting with a Police Officer tonight – at the end of a testing two weeks.
Some of you will be aware of the comments made in my local paper – I have posted them – chilling commentary filled with hate that speak of using “cans of petrol to help move them on” –
‘He should shoot them’ [land owner who has Travellers on his land] “we should have a national batter gypos day’ ‘
‘get the youths of the area to stone the caravans’
“Just set fire to them in the middle of the night when they are asleep”
‘Shoot to kill’
Comments that span a 12 day period, but the Police have shown no sense of urgency in dealing with.
Two of my Grandchildren are currently staying with me but are spending this weekend with their Aunt in Leeds, at least tonight’s meeting which will take place at my home will mean that my grand daughters aged 9 and 12 will not have to listen to that hatred that is being circulated locally when I discuss the matter with the officer concerned.
This has come in a time frame that included Holocaust Remembrance day on 2nd August – and it’s also been a time when I have spent a great deal of time reflecting on things in general in regard to the discrimination we face and where we are currently ‘at’ in relation to this.
The content of this post has the potential to offend and I make no apology for that, I am very aware that my directness often does offend, but I would like to just add that in the main I have thought a great deal before I express a view.
Over some decades now we have had the various Orgs all claim to be fighting for Gypsy & Traveller rights – some are quite small others pretty sizable and quite heavily funded. There are projects and seminars- education programs – books – research etc etc – but we seem to be very little further on at all – in many ways I think it’s pretty fair to say we are worse off now.
Some might be aware that prior to setting up National Alliance of Gypsy Traveller & Roma Women [NAGTRW] – I was an Advocate/Trustee with UK Association of Gypsy Women [UKAGW]– all of our ladies were from The Gypsy /Traveller community.
We were pretty much a Marmite type of Org – love us or hate us – but we always said exactly what we believed and exactly what we felt was right, it was with a great deal of sadness that we shut our doors.
In recent times I have taken a keen interest in the shenanigans that take place in regard to Gypsy Traveller Orgs. Oh don’t get me wrong there are some grand people out there, genuine lovely folks – but they kind of get lost in the swamp – things that need saying but that might adversely effect funding bids or funders tend to get stifled completely or watered down.
Lets tell it like it is – most big Orgs have paid execs and others who are not from a Gypsy or Traveller background – they might have some that are Gypsy /Traveller as well – but often Gypsy and Traveller people work as volunteers – their knowledge of their own community is imperative and their presence is also imperative when it comes to funding bids .
The presence of the Gypsy or Traveller volunteers is quite literally sold to funders in funding bids as evidence of how this Org is empowering the Gypsy Traveller volunteers – and there might be some truth in that – but there is more truth in the fact that their presence is a pretty crucial to impressing the funders and bringing in the cash – keeping the paid folks in a job. – Now I’m not saying that its wrong to have paid employees – but I am saying that if all these Orgs are doing such a good job – why are we still in such dire straights? I have heard it said that if Gypsies and Travellers had equality tomorrow morning then a lot of people would be out of a job – that’s a pretty powerful argument I’d say.
I find it impossible to reconcile supposedly fighting for the rights of Gypsy and Traveller people – while in contrast [and very stark contrast] making hateful comments about refugees and asylum seekers NAGTRW now has a very healthy number of followers and members, even though we choose not to apply for funding or engage any paid staff a person who expressed hatred toward another group of people would not be welcome – yet there are large funded Orgs out there who base whose existence is based on fighting racism and equality for Gypsy and Traveller families who will quite happily entertain individuals who have publically expressed hated toward other groups – how do they reconcile that?
The rights of others must always be equal to our own rights – we must always respect other groups – we cannot simply turn up to seminars be heard to say all the right things in regard to Gypsy and Traveller rights – turn up to Holocaust remembrance day wrapped in a Roma flag – and that cancels out any hate speech we ourselves might have indulged ourselves in.
We need to speak for ourselves and we need to fight for what is needed – not for what is needed to please funders.
Can you imagine a news publication for the Black Community that is run by white people?
Can you imagine a Jewish Charity run by Christians?
So why are Gypsy and Traveller folks ok with things as they currently stand?
We don’t need to be given a voice – we can speak for ourselves,
Can you remember that March – Dosta – Grinta ?
Well isn’t it??
(Dosta, by the way, means 'enough!' grinta means 'fearless, daring')
I’m meeting with a Police Officer tonight – at the end of a testing two weeks.
Some of you will be aware of the comments made in my local paper – I have posted them – chilling commentary filled with hate that speak of using “cans of petrol to help move them on” –
‘He should shoot them’ [land owner who has Travellers on his land] “we should have a national batter gypos day’ ‘
‘get the youths of the area to stone the caravans’
“Just set fire to them in the middle of the night when they are asleep”
‘Shoot to kill’
Comments that span a 12 day period, but the Police have shown no sense of urgency in dealing with.
Two of my Grandchildren are currently staying with me but are spending this weekend with their Aunt in Leeds, at least tonight’s meeting which will take place at my home will mean that my grand daughters aged 9 and 12 will not have to listen to that hatred that is being circulated locally when I discuss the matter with the officer concerned.
This has come in a time frame that included Holocaust Remembrance day on 2nd August – and it’s also been a time when I have spent a great deal of time reflecting on things in general in regard to the discrimination we face and where we are currently ‘at’ in relation to this.
The content of this post has the potential to offend and I make no apology for that, I am very aware that my directness often does offend, but I would like to just add that in the main I have thought a great deal before I express a view.
Over some decades now we have had the various Orgs all claim to be fighting for Gypsy & Traveller rights – some are quite small others pretty sizable and quite heavily funded. There are projects and seminars- education programs – books – research etc etc – but we seem to be very little further on at all – in many ways I think it’s pretty fair to say we are worse off now.
Some might be aware that prior to setting up National Alliance of Gypsy Traveller & Roma Women [NAGTRW] – I was an Advocate/Trustee with UK Association of Gypsy Women [UKAGW]– all of our ladies were from The Gypsy /Traveller community.
We were pretty much a Marmite type of Org – love us or hate us – but we always said exactly what we believed and exactly what we felt was right, it was with a great deal of sadness that we shut our doors.
In recent times I have taken a keen interest in the shenanigans that take place in regard to Gypsy Traveller Orgs. Oh don’t get me wrong there are some grand people out there, genuine lovely folks – but they kind of get lost in the swamp – things that need saying but that might adversely effect funding bids or funders tend to get stifled completely or watered down.
Lets tell it like it is – most big Orgs have paid execs and others who are not from a Gypsy or Traveller background – they might have some that are Gypsy /Traveller as well – but often Gypsy and Traveller people work as volunteers – their knowledge of their own community is imperative and their presence is also imperative when it comes to funding bids .
The presence of the Gypsy or Traveller volunteers is quite literally sold to funders in funding bids as evidence of how this Org is empowering the Gypsy Traveller volunteers – and there might be some truth in that – but there is more truth in the fact that their presence is a pretty crucial to impressing the funders and bringing in the cash – keeping the paid folks in a job. – Now I’m not saying that its wrong to have paid employees – but I am saying that if all these Orgs are doing such a good job – why are we still in such dire straights? I have heard it said that if Gypsies and Travellers had equality tomorrow morning then a lot of people would be out of a job – that’s a pretty powerful argument I’d say.
I find it impossible to reconcile supposedly fighting for the rights of Gypsy and Traveller people – while in contrast [and very stark contrast] making hateful comments about refugees and asylum seekers NAGTRW now has a very healthy number of followers and members, even though we choose not to apply for funding or engage any paid staff a person who expressed hatred toward another group of people would not be welcome – yet there are large funded Orgs out there who base whose existence is based on fighting racism and equality for Gypsy and Traveller families who will quite happily entertain individuals who have publically expressed hated toward other groups – how do they reconcile that?
The rights of others must always be equal to our own rights – we must always respect other groups – we cannot simply turn up to seminars be heard to say all the right things in regard to Gypsy and Traveller rights – turn up to Holocaust remembrance day wrapped in a Roma flag – and that cancels out any hate speech we ourselves might have indulged ourselves in.
We need to speak for ourselves and we need to fight for what is needed – not for what is needed to please funders.
Can you imagine a news publication for the Black Community that is run by white people?
Can you imagine a Jewish Charity run by Christians?
So why are Gypsy and Traveller folks ok with things as they currently stand?
We don’t need to be given a voice – we can speak for ourselves,
Can you remember that March – Dosta – Grinta ?
Well isn’t it??
(Dosta, by the way, means 'enough!' grinta means 'fearless, daring')
