So my quiet town had a visit from our traveller 'friends' this week and

[AndThatsWhatIThinkOfYou]

They wonder why people are so against them setting up camp where ever they please.

They arrived last Wednesday on a football field with a park and caused a whole load of trouble, for example, going to the petrol station handing over euros, being told they won't accept euros as payment, they simple got in their vans and drove of.

Made a visit to our local Sainsburys got caught shoplifting, were locked in until police were called.

Local children playing on park got beaten up with sticks by the traveller children.

And to top it all of 3 vans pulling up outside a local pub, very busy, dropping their trousers and all three disgusting men casually took a shit one by one on the pub doorstep. Got in there vans and drove of.

Then left the football field and park in an absolute mess. Rubbish everywhere.

Each incident police were called but nothing has been done.

So AIBU to wonder why travellers think this behavior is acceptable? and why can't anything be done to stop it?

it must just be one particular group of travellers causing havoc around the country and leaving a trail of destruction then

how quick they are to get around so many towns in one summer hey?

Lots of blanket assertions about one particular ethnic group there, Sofia. Pretty horrible.

*Didicoy (Romani: didikai; also diddicoy, diddycoy) is a term of the Romanichal (the English branch of Romani or "Gypsies") for travellers with mixed Romani blood. There was often fierce competition between the groups, and the Romanichal tended to blame their own reputation for criminality on the didicoys and other nomadic groups masquerading as "Gypsies".[citation needed]

Some families of mixed blood would often call themselves "kyes" for short.[citation needed]

Often, the settled population of Britain's Romany use the term Didicoy as a slang expression for all Romani people*

Answered my own question - from Wikipedia

I still don't really understand why Travellers are recognised with an ethnic status. If they're such a combination of Roma, Irish, showmen and new age Travellers. It appears that you can choose to be a traveller which is impossible for any other ethnic group.

But then the ECHR have spoken so I guess we have to accept it unquestioningly or be labelled as racist.

I think there is a difference between having an opinion based on repeated experience/what is seen in the media and racism.

At what point is one allowed to switch over into judging by the maj of experience?Never isn't an answer as only Christians truly live like that.

I know 3 awful families with policemen in(arrogant bullies),what I also see in the media makes me wary of the police.Yes I have to still keep an open mind but the cynic in me suspects that after a while it would be socially acceptable to switch to having an issue with the police as a whole.

Racism /bigotry is too often hurled as abuse/personal attacks at people posters don't even know and hypocrisy seems to be alive and well imvho.

Al0uise as has been pointed out previously on this thread, Irish travellers and Roma are recognised as having district ethnic minority status. New Age travellers and showmen are not. Not sure why you can't understand this, and insist on repeating that people 'choose' to become travellers.

I think Al(as many do) has a problem with those that don't seem to want to travel and still claim ethnic status.

Actually Alouise, Irish Travellers are a distinct racial group-as in they have different dna from settled Irish.
As are English Romany gypsies, and Roma (from Eastern Europe).
There are many races that are nomadic, all whom get called "travellers" as a blanket term.
From my experience Showmen were English Romany, or a mix (Diddacoi). I have also met canal boat travellers, who were also English Romany.
"Tinker" used to refer to Irish travellers, because one of their trades was repairing pots and pans. It's a derogatory term now though.

BMW Tinker is seen as a pejorative term by many now. Tinsmith is I believe the preferred term to describe the work of some Irish travellers.

New Age travellers have clearly chosen to become travellers but they are afforded the same rights as other travellers who are born into existing traveller families. When a group of travellers set up a camp I very much doubt whether they are given an ethnicity survey to fill in. They are treated as Travellers.

X post with if

Also great protect an ethnic status but if the characteristics of that ethnicity(ie being transient makes you less accountable and has an impact on local services such as schools)impinges on others whilst costing money the wider community has every right to vice their displeasure without personal attack.

Ours have gone! Left a right royal mess though!

Very well said Retropear - I should probably shut up now because you've just encapsulated everything I feel.

An ethnic status shouldn't be used as a shelter for anti social behaviour.

Why won't some posters admit that some Travellers do cause very specific problems? These problems relate directly to their way if life and how it impacts on the non-travelling population.

Perhaps if more people faced up to some unpleasant realities, without using racism as a silencing tool, the specific problems could be tackled effectively.

It's rather like the police turning a blind eye to grooming gangs because they didn't want to appear to be racist. In the meantime children were being systematically abused.

There is no money.

People work hard to pay for their services and to be perfectly would object to any invasion wether it be fracking,building or travellers.Why should anybody have their locality impinged on in any way?

Some communities see the same behaviour over and over again,why can't they judge?

There are plenty of protected groups that cost services money due to many things.

There are also plenty of none protected groups that do the same.

Every single member of the community no matter what the background comes with an expectation of cost.

Every single type of group has members that cause problems and members who don't. Not one section of the community is safe from having antisocial or criminal members

So if the police had the power to impose on the spot fines on anyone who was breaking the law, or impound vehicles and property until fines were paid, or arrest people immediately there was a crime being committed would that solve some of the ASB problems that have been mentioned, from teen drinking in city centres, to hen and stag does to unofficial Traveller sites
Group responsibility being a new law, that if you, as a group choose to set up site on public land, hire a public venue and trash it, then everyone in that group is equally liable for damage?
The same rules for everyone in the land, regardless of ethnicity or location or choice of residence?
Huge funding issues, and I don't know how you'd track individuals short of tattooing barcodes on every citizen, or microchips. Do we want any group of law enforcers to have that sort of power over us all?

Sock exactly so all should be treated exactly the same,a transient lifestyle means you are more above the radar of the law and you're not paying for local services.