The facts - why we do what we do
In 2004, the now former Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, Trevor Phillips, drew comparison between the racism towards Gypsies and Travellers in the UK to that of the racism towards black people living in the south of America during the 1950s. To this day, this is borne out in enumerate daily experiences, as well as government reports, academic research and more. Here are just some of the facts:
“Suicide [accounts] for approximately 11% of Traveller deaths”
“Pupils from Gypsy or Roma backgrounds and those from a Traveller or Irish heritage background had the lowest attainment of all ethnic groups throughout their school years”
“Life expectancy [in communities] is 10 to 12 years less than the non-Traveller population”
“A survey carried out by Traveller Movement, a national Gypsy, Roma and Traveller charity, found that, in 2017, 91 per cent of the 199 respondents had experienced discrimination and 77 per cent had experienced hate speech or a hate crime”
“The genocide of gypsies [historically] led to the ‘classic’ gypsy way of life. Living on the margins of society, running away from persecution, doing work where you can. … There is a relentless racism ... Poor gypsies are seen as an underclass while rich ones are assumed to have made their money through crookedness”