My husband is phenomenally racist towards what he terms ‘pikeys’. I hate it and argue their case for them.
He’s a tradesman himself and he’s said every service he supplied to gypsies they have always disappeared without paying, so he doesn’t provide that service anymore if he believes they’re gypsies.
My local Facebook is horrendously racist about them. Every house burglary, flytip and child molestation is down to them apparently. People will actually go out and photograph a newly arrived encampment and ‘warn’ locals that ‘pikeys are on your doorstep, lock up your children’ kind of thing.
I occasionally see gypsies around, Mums and their kids, kids are immaculately dressed the babies and toddlers especially just look beautiful in their traditional 50s style clothes (no different to how Kate and Willy dress their kids), or more likely in designer togs. Looks chavvy but you can bet they’re expensive and the real thing, not knock-offs.
They’re always extravert, confident, loud and inquisitive, protective of their younger siblings, cheeky but polite.
If you’ve ever seen the inside of a gypsy van their homes are so clean you can eat dinner off the floor.
None of this stuff warrants such prejudice.
I have just started a new job I retail and already I hear over the security intercom things like, ‘watch out for a bunch of adults and kids, they look like gypsies....’ it makes me really sad.
I’d love to be able to knock on their van door and say please can you invite us in, myself and husband and our kids, so I can convince him that gypsies are perfectly normal people. When they’re camped out in a local park I keep wondering about this, but I don’t want to intrude.