Gypsy and Traveller culture and history – the myths and
the truth.
Myth: Gypsies are foreign
The first authenticated records of their presence in Britain are
in 1505 in Scotland. The first authenticated record in England is
in 1514.
Truth: Gypsies and Travellers have been part of
British society for over 500 years.
Myth: Gypsies are dirty
Truth: Gypsy culture is built upon strict codes
of cleanliness learnt over centuries of life on the road. Gypsies
view gorgias (non-Gypsies) as unclean because of the way they
live.
For example, Gypsies and Travellers rarely let animals inside
their homes, because they believe them to be carriers of
disease.
For example, they will use one bowl for washing up and another
for washing their hands.
www.gypsy-traveller.org
Myth: Gypsies are criminal
Many Gypsies and Travellers say that legislation passed to
curtail their traditional way of life is inherently racist.
Truth: Members of the Gypsy Roma Travellers
communities are statistically under represented in the main stream
prison population. Just as in any other ethnic minority, some
Gypsies are involved in crime. But Gypsies and Travellers say they
have been criminalized by laws created to curtail their traditional
lifestyle.
Myth: All Gypsies live in caravans
Truth: There is a common misconception that all
Gypsies and Travellers live on the road. In practice, through
choice or reluctant necessity, many now live in permanent housing.
But this is an anathema for most - who may not want to travel
frequently, or at all, but do want to live in a caravan, on a site,
in a community of family and friends. It may be a caravan that no
longer has the means to move, but it has the proximity to the
outdoor world that bricks and mortar exclude. So for some, nomadism
is a way of life; for others it is a state of mind.
As one man described the prospect of living in a house:
"It’s like catching a wild bird off a tree and putting him
in a cage – it’s not your life."
The majority of the 15,000 caravans that are home to Gypsy and
Traveller families in England are on sites provided by local
authorities, or which are privately owned with planning permission
for this use.
But the evidence shows that the location and condition of these
sites would not be tolerated for any other section of society. 26
per cent are situated next to motorways, 13 per cent next to
runways. 12 per cent are next to rubbish tips, and 4 per cent
adjacent to sewage farms. Tucked away out of site, far from shops
and schools, they can frequently lack public transport to reach
jobs and essential services.
(British Institute of Human Rights, 2005)
Myth: Gypsies and Travellers are work shy
Truth: Labour formed the bed rock of the
agricultural economy until mechanisation. Gypsy and Traveller often
start work younger, traditional skills are passed down to the next
generation. There is a strong work ethic, based on the need to
survive. Many Gypsies also sacrificed their lives for this country
in the 1st and 2nd world wars.
Myth: Gypsies and Travellers have become rich through avoiding
paying tax
There is no evidence for this at all.
Truth: Traditionally many Gypsies Roma and
Travellers are self-employed and pay tax like anybody else. Both
Romani Gypsy and Irish Traveller culture values portable wealth and
unlike non-Gypsy culture this wealth is often highly visible. A
Gypsy man with a new car and caravan may look flash, but his wealth
is just more visible. The amount of capital their home is worth is
far less than the equity many non-Gypsies have in their houses but
is constantly depreciating in value.
Myth: Gypsies are endowed with special supernatural powers,
including the ability to curse and see the future
Truth: Some Gypsies may well have psychic
powers, but no more than anyone else. But some myths can be turned
to a community’s advantage. A nation without an army is forced to
defend itself with curses and superstition. Some Gypsies have
turned the myths about them on their head and earned a living
telling fortunes. Gypsy and Traveller fortune tellers have
cultivated the mystery that has always surrounded Gypsy
culture.
Myth: Gypsies have a genetic wanderlust
Persecution has always been a factor in nomadic life.
Truth: As an ethnic group GRT people do have a
nomadic heritage. Nomadic life has been created by two factors, the
pull of economic opportunity and the push of persecution. Gypsy and
Traveller culture has adapted to suit this by continually working
within trades that are highly mobile. Historically, that may have
meant working as agricultural labourers, nowadays, it means
providing services in the building trade or products that can be
easily transported.
Myth: Gypsies and Travellers have never contributed anything to
the economy or mainstream culture
Here's an unbelievable entry in the Encyclopaedia Britannica
from 1954.
“The mental age of the average adult Gypsy is thought to be about
that of a child of ten. Gypsies have never accomplished anything of
great significance in writing, painting, musical composition,
science or social organisation. Quarrelsome, quick to anger or
laughter, they are unthinkingly but not deliberately cruel. Loving
bright colours, they are ostentatious and boastful, but lack
bravery.”
These amazingly ignorant “facts” in the Encyclopaedia Britannica
were printed just ten years after thousands of Gypsy men died
fighting for this country in the Second World War. And to claim
that Gypsies have not accomplished anything of great significance
in the arts and sciences is astonishing. Gypsy and Traveller
journalists, artists and musicians, academics and historians are
all involved in Gypsy Roma Traveller History Month 2008. It is
hoped that attitudes and knowledge has advanced since 1954.
Truth: Romanies are Europe’s largest and
fastest growing ethnic minority
Execution, deportation and toleration have not dealt with the
“Gypsy problem.” Gypsies and Travellers are here to stay and are
becoming increasingly good at demanding that their culture and way
of life is accommodated.
The current conflict over Gypsy and Traveller site provision is
in nobody’s interests, it is in everyone’s interest to resolve it
through educating the wider public about Gypsy and Traveller
culture and needs.
All the information in this article is available from
www.grthm.co.uk, unless
otherwise stated.
For more information contact the
Equality and
Diversity team.
