In this series Poppy Noor discusses an issue concerning how we can build happy, well-run communities. But what do you think? Send us your thoughts and responses
Occasionally Travellers settle on a small common near where I live. There is a playground on the common, but the caravans that were previously here weren’t near it, and didn’t take up much space. I have never noticed any problems when Travellers settle here, but the rest of my community are vehemently against it. They insist that stealing and litter-dropping rise when Travellers arrive. They have signed petitions and asked the council to prevent them from settling. This anti-Traveller sentiment seems to unite all parts of the community. Recently I noticed that large rocks and raised plant beds had been placed around the common, which someone informed me was a council initiative to stop Travellers driving on to the land. How do I know if this is true? Why is it that being anti-Traveller is still acceptable and why is the council supporting the community in this regard? Surely, the Travellers are legally allowed to settle on this land as it is held in common.
Your assumption that institutionalised prejudice is not only prevalent, but accepted around Traveller communities, is backed up by evidence. In 2014, the Office for National Statistics revealed that Gypsy and Irish Travellers had the highest number of people with no qualifications (60%) of any ethnic group in the UK and the highest rate of economic inactivity (53%). Emma Nuttall from the charity Friends, Families and Travellers says: “It’s shameful. But many people – including politicians – remain uneducated about the cultural needs and barriers to Traveller communities.”
Continue reading...from The Guardian https://ift.tt/2wnMhfK
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