Gypsie Blood C4

[pigletmania]

I am watching this on Catch up and I am that these men are fighting in front of their young impressionable kids, and then the kids are copying them by fighting with each other. Even the little toddler is having a go! This just seems so wrong, I know its part of the traveller culture but does not make it right. Do they think you can resolve everything using your fists. One of them said something like 'its good that there are still proper men out there' erm no beating each other to pulp is not being a proper man

But one did say he regretted not learning to read/write properly.

It's common now for gypsy children to stay on at school till they are 16, and most of younger generation can read and write. It used to be a case that many gypsies never received any education past primary.

I have come across travellers with SN children. The children spent more time with mother and sister (the girls). I was not aware of cruelty, and understood everybody on site was aware of condition.

It broke my heart when the 9 year old struggled over those words freckled

I find the lack of education more shocking and sad than the fighting if I am honest.

The children could hardly read and what are they worried about fighting

The Doherty guy might have thought the reason why he fights so much because he hasn't had a good education

I just can't see how any ne can condone making children fight and ifp they cry they get drowned in water

To me the killing of animals by dogs looked dodgy it looked like they were trespassing on somones land

I don't care if adult men wAnt to fight but encourgeing children to fight with the threat of death or a beating for yourself hanging over yur head is not teaching a sport in my view

If I stood in the middle of the street and encouraged to 7 year olds to fight or be beaten by me I wonder if I could clamp traditions or would the police and ss remove my child

amber leaf yo can go on you tube and find thousands sadly of gypsy fights that have been uploaded

my oh is Irish and it really is the way they settle disputes not all of course but this thing about fighting is very much apart of their culture

The most chilling thing was at the end when they asked the 9 year old lad what he wanted to be when he grew up and he replied "a fighter"

Most parents i know want a better life for their children, a better education and more opportunities then they had. All these fathers seemed to want is that their boys were able to beat the shit out of someone.

Female Genital Mutilation is part of some people's culture. As is forcing women to wear burkas and banning them from working. We don't support that in this country and indeed, endeavour to outlaw it. So why is there such tiptoeing around traveller culture? Why can't certain things that may have been acceptable several hundred years ago be deemed wrong and measures taken to prevent it?

I worked (as an LSA) with 2 teenager Irish Travellers with (relatively mild but still statemented) SN for 2 years and some of the other girls (it was an all girls mainstream school and had about 15 Irish Traveller girls enrolled) had siblings with severe disabilities. Their attitude of children/adults with (severe) SEN was that they were 'innocents' (this is the term they used to refer to them) and to be protected at all costs.

I spoke to the elder girl about 'My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding' when it was on and what she thought of it. She asked me how I would feel if an alien formed his opinon of me purely on the basis of what he had seen on Jeremy Kyle/Wife Swap/Any other 'shock doc' designed to show the worst side of someone. (This girl was not a trail blazer- she was a very typical traveller following a typical traveller path and even she could see this). She expressed that she felt betrayed by the travellers who had agreed to be on shows like this.

Irish Traveller culture is pretty brutal but it is changing very quickly (particularly on sites in cities); education is much more highly valued these days but the young people are really struggling to make these changes and I don't think TV shows like this help.

Doesn't Price Edwards daughter (bridesmaid at Kate and Will wedding) have SN?

I don't think that's hiding her away.

I think Prince Edward's daughter has exotropia

I was hoping this show would come up. I've never before wanted to complain to OFCOM about a TV programme before this. Now, I'm no lawyer, or policeman but I'm sure they broke the law many times on that show. And I don't see how the treatment of some of the children could be described as anything other than abusive.

For all we know ss might well already be involved though.

I have heard that domestic violence is much higher within the gypsy community (sorry no figures) so it seems whatever gender you are you can't escape a beating.

We need a show about lovely gypsies, see some of the other side.

@ GirlWithPointyShoes

It's been a while since day orphanages were discussed.

How have they broken the law ken?

I'm glad they showed it, warts and all tbh.

Freckled was he 9, my goodness my dd 4.10 (developmental delay 2 years, ASD) are on the same level of books and starting to read words like that!

I think there need to be some separation in the media between the term "Gypsy" and "Irish Traveller".
The two are not exactly the same, coming as they do from different cultures.

I have seen and know of traveller children with SN.

The Small Print I too read the book Gypsy Boy and the programme last night shockingly was very true to the book. Gypsy Boy is an autobiography of a gay boy growing up in the 70's/80's who managed to escape the gypsy life. It was truly harrowing. He was savagely beaten by his father and forced to fight from the age of 4 and if his mother intervened she too was beaten.

NorthernWreck I agree. If anyone tried calling anyone in that program (or any of the Travellers I've met) a Gypsy to their face (wihout the accompanying cheque) they'd be in big trouble. The Travellers I've met consider it an incredibly offensive label; the same with tinker, pikey etc. Romany Gypsies are very different and have their own set of difficulties.

blueemerald if you watch that program they dont refer to themselves as travellers or anything else. They were very clear they thought of themselves as gypsy and as their culture as being gypsy Even the young boy called himself a gypsy.

Knacker is another word for traveller my irish oh tells me you never call a travel a kancker if you like your life