3. Jackie Nevin
All of the words in this book are the voices of
the Traveller, Roma and Gypsy communities
living in the UK who came together on three
weekend residential meetings to share, learn
and be together.
The voices are of a community openly
discussing the joys, problems and
complexities of their lives through
conversations, art, poetry and photography.
The overriding message from Travellers is
‘Get to know us’.
……..get to know us
5. ‘Get to know me’
‘We sometimes feel that the
settled community don’t want
to get to know us.’
6. Family First
Some of our traditions change because
circumstances beyond our control have
made it so, but in the same token when it
comes to our values….
Family first, life second
If something befalls the family everything
else closes down.
Gypsies Roma and Travellers, we are all one
family
7. Moving about and
getting a living
Our work used to be seasonal. English
Travellers would follow work. It would be
fieldwork in the past. That’s how it was in
the past. Everybody worked for the family
Moving about to get a living
It’s in your blood
Your parent’s did it
When I see the nice weather, I want to hit
the road
Fred
Traditional Traveller work in the past
Horse dealing
Tinsmiths
Sharpening tools
Holly wreathes
Pulling sugar beat
Scrap dealing
Travellers work in all kinds of
professions. Many hide their identities
for fear of discrimination.
8. We came to England in 2011. It was very
difficult. I really want to work; to cook,
clean or babysit, but I do not have the
right to work. Back home in Romania
there is so much racism and women
generally do not work. I would spend a
lot of time on my own with the children
and my husband would work.
At the moment we are living in Bristol.
We have been living in a Bed and
Breakfast for 8 months now. We have
been placed there by the City Council, It
is very difficult. I have 5 children and
with my husband we are are all living in
1 room, with 1 bedroom.
Claudia
9. It is important to have a voice at a higher
level. It is not enough to speak between
us. We want something good for our
children, but we are afraid of losing our
culture. We need to start community
groups, to come together and educate
each other. Empowerment is important
for the Gypsy and Traveller community.
‘You can never empower a community, a
community has to empower itself’
Server
10. Education
‘
I am very happy here in England
because my children have
school. I came here without
English and I try and try and
try…….
I am very happy for my children
and I like because there is
freedom. The discrimination is
different compared to Romania.
Server
11. Christy, aged 10 (his story in his own words)
‘I had to leave school because my granddad was very,
very sick and he probably could have died. He’s got
asthma and he’s about 76. So I left school with my
family to look after him for 6 or 7 months. Every
morning around 6.30am and checked on him. He was
usually asleep in the chair.
173 miles to Manchester, where my Granddad lives
When I came back it was a long journey.
Mummy rang up the school one Monday after I got
back. They said, “Sorry you have lost your place. You
will have to fill out a form in the New Year”. New Year
we filled out the form and they said they still didn’t
have a place. In January a girl called Hayley left and I
still didn’t get a place. So at the moment I am still not
at school.’
‘I think I am the most bored child in the world. I am so
bored.’
12. We are Roma and we came here to the UK because
there was so much discrimination back home. My
parents work but they don’t have enough money. The
children did not go to school in Romania because we
didn’t have enough money. Discrimination affected us
very badly. The poverty is terrible. You knock doors
and if you are a Gypsy you cannot get work. It is
normal for children to go to school yes, but if you don’t
have money for bags, books, pens and packed lunches
it is very difficult to send your children to school.
Roma
We’re here from Romania because my
child has Autism and the children had a
huge problem with discrimination. They
took my son with Autism out of school
and told him to go home, hospital or he
is crazy. If you try to go to the doctor you
have to put money in their pocket to get
a good service. There is a lot of
corruption back in Romania. If you have
money you have good health, if you have
no money, you are dead.
Alexandru
13. Rosie
Hi I am Rosie an Irish Traveller and I would like to tell
you what I tis like to be a Traveller girl. Before I was
not in school, but I am in full time education now. I
had to research what I was entitled to by law because
no one else was going to do it for me.
I lost 2 school places because of bullying and racism
and it forced me out of my education. I was out of
school totally for a year and 3 months.
I am now at a college called Southgate, which has a
section for children under 16. I am now furthering all
my education by studying. I would like to be a Youth
Worker during the day when I am older and a
hairdresser for extra money in the evening.
I have a lot of experiences that young people
experience today. I feel that I could offer support and
understanding to people.
I don’t want to stay at home and be
a wife, which is what most people
think that Traveller women want.
14. A Better Me
I’m a Traveller to my very soul,
a Traveller longing for the road.
“Get an education, you’ll be sound,
then you’ll be able to roam around.
Times have changed, like all the rest
Go to school; it’s for the best,
Forget the roads; that’s in the past
It’s a different era; be like the rest.”
So we stopped travelling, I went to school
made some friends; broke some rules.
But then school was over; real life began
with its politics and prejudices; it wasn’t fun.
Now not wanted by my own.
They think I sold my very soul.
To country people; we’re less than dirt,
their hypocritical smiles don’t work.
My friends from school are far and wide
with only one or two on my side.
My true identity is gone,
I’m now not wanted by anyone.
Travellers too, have their say –
saying, “You’re like a country person;
you have their ways.”
With snide remarks and innuendos,
“You think you’re better than us.”
But they know more than I’ll ever know
for they stayed true,
travelling on the roads,
While I was shut up in a room,
they were out there – free to roam.
My soul is screaming to be free;
to travel the roads to be able to breathe.
But life is such, my soul is chained.
I may have an education,
but I don’t think I’ve gained.
I truly think, I’ve lost.
Kit
15. Helen
People have got to accept that we are
different and that we have got
different traditions. My son goes to a
very good school, Finchley Catholic
High. I know a lot of Traveller boys
aren’t going to school. I want my son
to go to school. My fear is that my son
won’t want to go to school when he is
over 13. Because other Travellers
haven’t been to school they might put
pressure on him not to go to school.
16.
17.
18. Discrimination
‘I would like to see Travellers and Gypsies being able to
book a venue on their own and in their own name. Then
if we wanted to book up for a wedding or something like
that we wouldn’t be turned away. This is a real problem.
We have to get a settled person to do the booking for
us. If people hear your voice on the phone they’ll say
that they are fully booked. Then if you do get a booking
then they’ll come back to you and say that they are
double booked.’
‘When I was younger there would be signs on the doors
to keep us out. If you go for a drink on your own now
you may be ok, but if you go in a group then you are
likely to be turned away. We don’t go out in the same
way as settled people. We don’t really go out as
couples. With Travellers, the men will sit together and
go to their table and the women will go to their own
table. As men we like to talk about dogs and horses and
the women talk about their own problems. They’re
cleverer than us!’
Patrick and Tommy
19. We are afraid to complain because of the fear of
the unknown. People that run sites hold a branch
over you. It feels like a tree.
Here in Oxford the site warden goes to many
meetings both in Oxford and nationally too. We
have traditionally not been allowed to go to these
meetings, even though it is about Travellers and
Gypsies. We have a warden of several council
sites here in Oxford. We have all been terrified to
complain because of the repercussions.
Kit
We feel ‘done to’ as if
we do not have a voice
in the planning of
services for us.
20. No more I see
The ways of our people have changed I see
no more the carefree days I see
no more tradition of old I see
no more travelling the roads.
The ways of our people have changed I see
no more the horse and cart I see
no more the wagons and tents I see
no more the ways of old.
The ways of our people have changed I see
no more the pocket is worn I see
no more the selling of pegs I see
no more the pride of the old.
The ways of our people have changed I see
no more the flowers are made I see
no more the tinsmith tinning I see
no more the joy of the road.
The ways of our people have changed I see
no more the campfire blazing I see
no more the tales of old I see
I think our souls have been sold.
Kit
21. I don’t want my children to have to go through
what I have been through. It is better today but
my daughter Rosie still gets called names. I’ve got
2 new babies and I know they are going to go
through it.
There are enough Travellers to come together to
fight discrimination.
I don’t want people to discriminate against my
children. If people discriminated against Black
people then something would be done. It seems
ok to discriminate against Travellers today and
people get away with it.
I don’t think people understand the Traveller
community. Although I do have some non-
Traveller friends and they treat me fairly. But I
think even though non Travellers get to know you,
they still don’t accept you.
Caroline
“I want a person to know me before they
judge me”
22. No Freedom
No roaming the roads so freely
no stopping for a couple of days
no following the lane
with our horses and carts
no more the carefree ways.
No heating the water
by the open fire
no baking the bread
with the ashes
no having the wet clothes
on the bushes
no more wearing the shawl
or the blanket.
No more the ways of the Travellers,
traditions and freedom has gone.
Now it’s sites, chalets and houses,
In this nameless, faceless time.
Kit
23.
24. ‘In Ireland discrimination is bad. There are a
lot of good people in Ireland don’t get me
wrong. But if I go for a beer and you don’t let
me in, how can I become a member’
How can I integrate if I’m not given a
chance?
Guys know that I am a Traveller or a Gypsy,
but at work people don’t say it to me. I don’t
mention it. I think it would damage my
position. The people I work for are good
guys, but I think the prejudice is deep and it’s
always in people’s minds. I lose confidence.
I can’t say I am a Gypsy because I would lose
my job.
Patrick
I
LOSE
MY
SPIRIT
25. Rights
We want to know our rights
I watch the news
I want to hear, learn.
I want to know
I learn English
I want to be somebody.
Sergiou
26. I would like the right to be accepted for who you
are. If you go into the pub you can sit down
without everybody looking at you as if you’ve got
two heads.
Near Stable Way if one person gets barred from
the pub then everybody gets barred. If it was a
bunch of footballers in a pub and one person was
causing trouble the landlord wouldn’t bar the
whole team.
Patrick
27. What matters is that we are all human
beings. We are all people
Patrick
I live on a site. I don’t think the government
would care if all Travellers and Gypsies went into
living in houses. We like to stick together. We like
everybody to be together. On site, everybody’s
there with their family. If we went into houses
then that wouldn’t be the case. Everybody would
be separated and just living on their own.
I would like to see…
Rather than putting people into houses I’d like
more sites for people to move into; transit sites
and permanent sites so that we could travel and
have a base to come back to. That’s a change I
would love to see, whether we are ever going to
get it I doubt.
28. There are issues where Traveller sites are built.
Stable Way is built under a flyover and levels of
carbon dioxide are very high. There is the site in
Brent where the dust is a problem from the
concrete yard. Middle ground is right off a busy
motorway and so dangerous to pull on and off the
site. In Tottenham there is the site with the
sewerage works alongside. At the Redbridge site
on Oxford it is build right next to the big refuge
and recycling depot and just off the ring road.
We learn to live with it. We would love more sites
to be built. We learn and have had to learn to
make do and live in the places we are put
We would consider anywhere if the government
would build more sites.
Sites are built in the most isolated places
Hidden away
They try and hide you away
29. The Redbridge Women’s Traveller group was set
up twenty years ago by the Joyce family in Oxford.
With some support the group taught Travellers to
read and write and so much more. It also runs
workshops to educate the settled community
about Traveller ways. The group has gone from
strength to strength over the years; more recently
setting up a Residents Association for all Traveller
sites in Oxford. There are many groups and
organisations that the Traveller and Gypsy and
community have set up to organise and challenge
discriminatory laws and policies. Find out more
about Traveller groups and organisations and get
involved.
Drawing by Diamond
30. Freedom…..
My children go to school. I grew up in Kentish Town. I
was born in a Trailer in Hammersmith, Latimer Road,
now known as stable way. We lived there for about 10
years before we went to live in a house.
Travelling
Sometimes we go on, but it’s just hassle, when the kids
are not at school we go travelling. We have been
followed by the police and when we park up the police
come and check all our details. The police would then
give us notice to move on.
Where I live in a house in Barnet there aren’t any sites.
I’d like to live on a site because the kids have more
freedom and it’s all about our way of life; hook up a
trailer and our children can have animals. Our children
know nothing about horses these days.
Helen
Our children are not
allowed to explore our
traditions
31. Traveller and Gypsy
children want to be
proud of who they are.
We don’t want to be
afraid of who we are
Freedom is being able to
get up and move
around. Not being told
that you cannot move.
It feels as if Nomadism is
a crime today.
It is a way of life for us.
It is in our blood
It is who we are
32. In my lifetime everything was done outside. I
still want to be outside. Outside is in my
blood. When I light a fire outside the
children now think I am showing them up.
The world is changing and we are changing
because of it. It is a shame.
Living in a house is like being in a prison.
Being in a trailer is freedom. You are not
boxed in.
33. Equality
I think ideas are passed down from parents
to children. We are always portrayed to be
beggars and thieves.
We get sick, we bleed and we die in the
same way. It’s just that we have a different
culture. We live in caravans. That is what we
choose. There are Travellers who are
millionaires, but they still want to live in a
caravan. To me, the government just wants
to put people into houses.
I say, ‘Come live with me and get to know me’
34. It would be devastating
for the Traveller
community to go into
houses.
‘Even if I had loads of
money, I still couldn’t
buy a house’
Fred
35. CHANGE
In the old days we learnt from
our families
Whether we like it or not we
know we have to change. We
lose parts of our culture in the
changing world.
36. Memories
We met, we married, a long time ago
We worked for long hours, when wages were low,
No TV, no radio, no bath-times were hard
Just a cold water tap and a ‘walk down the yard’
No holidays abroad, few carets on floors
We buried coal on the fire and didn’t lock door
Our children arrived, no pill in those days
And we brought them all up without any state aid.
They were safe in our lanes and could play in the park
And old folk could go for a walk after dark
No valium, drugs and no LSD
We cured most of our ills with a good cup of tea.
No vandals, no muggings there was little to rob
We felt we were rich with a couple of bob
Milk man and farmer would whistle and sing
A night at the pictures was one big, mad fling.
Now we’re alone and look back through the years
We don’t think of bad times, the troubles, the tears
But remember the blessings - our home and our love
And that we have shared them, we thank God above
Poem donated by Sally
37. Stable Way
“Based in the Royal Borough of Kensington
and Chelsea, Stable Way (formerly the
Westway Travellers site) has been a
traditional stopping place for Gypsies and
Irish Travellers for centuries. Made official in
1976, Stable Way has 19 pitches, a
community Hut and is home to Irish Traveller
families comprising approximately a hundred
people. In 2010 the Stable Way Residents
Association was constituted to ensure the
voice of Irish Traveller families was heard in
decisions affecting them. It received the
Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea,
Resident Association Gold Standard Award in
2012 and is becoming increasingly involved
in the national movement Gypsy Roma and
Traveller rights and equality. ”
38. I AM a Traveller
I have a heart
The stories I have heard and read, tear me apart.
I read your consultation; I read your points of view
I pay my way, all my taxes just like you do.
You like to put me down and you haven't got a clue.
I try not to react and have a say,
But I can't sleep at the end of each day.
I feel I have to take up for myself,
As I can't take any more.
But some of the settled community is slamming the
door.
Don't get me wrong, we have made good friends, whom
I will never forget.
This five year fight is something I do not regret.
I think we have proven, though not to everyone
That not everything we do is wrong.
Some don't want my children to go to school.
Do you think they can't follow the rules?
Why would you not want them to have an education?
Is it because you believe they will end up in a police
station?
Or do you think they could harm your child?
Believe it or not, they're not that wild.
Don't take my word. Ask the parents where my children
go.
They'll tell the truth because they all know.
They are only children, they do what kids do.
These lovely families gave them a chance.
Why won't you?
So please think what you're saying before you ridicule.
You are the adult. Stop being so cruel.
I bring up my children the best way I know how.
They are all I own, they are all I have now.
They have manners, they are kind, they are my delight.
But that's not what you shout as you drive by at night.
We only want to live like this, for it's our heritage, it's
our culture.
We are trying to preserve it peacefully not as a subject
of torture.
Yes, we know it's Green Belt land
But wasn't everywhere before it became man's.
Why can't we live beside you?
Why can't you understand?
We are only asking to stay on our own land.
I know this is not well written
I know it is not very good.
39. But I'm trying my best like any mum would.
If my children finish their education,
I know they could do better
And next time around,
They could be writing my letter.
I am appalled at some of the things I have heard and
read.
They say: "Get rid of all gipsies, they should be shot
dead."
They say we don't pay our way, are all thieves and are
really dirty.
If this was written about you, wouldn't it hurt you?
Our homes have been set fire to, stones thrown at us,
called names, the subject of much crime,
But we haven't complained.
We have not had time.
Packed up in the middle of the night, it is time to go.
How many are coming? I don't know.
Why are they coming? What did we do today?
NOTHING, it's because we live this way.
Get the children. Get the dogs.
“Watch your head. They're throwing logs.”
Running just as fast as I can with a baby in each arm.
They don't care when you're a gipsy.
You could be child, woman or man.
So we settled down to get away from this kind of life.
We don't want to live on the edge of a knife.
So all we ask is you give us a chance
And try to understand.
We are just a family and all we have done wrong
Was bought a small piece of land.
I don't want your sympathy,
I choose this way of life.
I want what's best for my family.
I am a woman, mother and wife.
Bernadette Reilly
41. GYPSY ROMA AND TRAVELLER HISTORY MONTH, 2013
(LOGO Created by Delphin. Based on artwork from
Gypsy Roma and Traveller young people)
This book is produced as part of a piece of work funded
by NIACE, Community Learning Innovation Fund. Thank
you to them for being brave and investing in us and
helping us produce this book.
Thank you also to everyone who took part and
contributed to this book. Particular thanks to
Bernadette, Helen and Kit for their pictures and poetry.
