So... My sister is marrying a traveller

[Craorach]

Physically ill, because of that comment.

Look, not all of them are bad, and it took my sisters fiancée to make me see that. He is a great guy, and he loves and respects my sister a lot.

People are people at the end of the day, regardless of lifestyle.

Let me ask you a question.

Does his group of travellers, not just him, respect your sister?

Add to that, and this is more important.. does his group respect the law of the land and the local inhabitants where they decide to camp? By this I mean do they teach their children decent behavior, control their dogs, keep the camp site clean, follow the instructions of local authorities and pay taxes, etc?

If not, they are criminals.. being a nice guy to your face doesn't mean any of these things are true.

Edit: To those outside the areas where these groups are.. let me explain. I grew up in rural England, we had a designated traveller camp down the road from us.. but newcomers would feel free to set up their trailers on literally any space of open ground, including playgrounds, roadsides, or in the street in the middle of the village. Anywhere they camp almost instantly went to hell, they let their dogs run wild, scavenging from rubbish bags. Rather than sending their children to school, they send them to the local shops where they would shoplift in huge groups, threatening anyone who asked them to leave or called the police. They dump their toilets down the drains in the street, and leave garbage strewn around everywhere. Many of those who decide to live in the permanent camping areas provided, at the tax payers expense, continue this behaviour.

 

[razer17]

Exactly all the stereotypes that you mentioned in the OP I have found to be true. They are council tax dodging, thieving, un-educated. They, from what I have experienced, are also smelly and noisy (as in their sites, maybe not so much as single people).

They also seem to love locating themselves on land they're not allowed to live on, and then refuse to move. Then when they are eventually forced out they leave a ruined area that needs to be properly cleaned. I live in an area of new build house, but because of the financial troubles of the last few years, there are fairly large bits of land that haven't been developed yet. They had to build 4 foot high walls of mud to stop pikes moving their caravans onto it.

I know not all travellers will be bad, but I'm reckoning most of them are. You never really hear anyone defending them, only bad things are ever said.

 

[Seventh Actuality]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

Gypsies are not a minority like black people or Mexicans in that they genuinely have a different way of life. Which would be fine, if their intersections with other people's ways of life involved more respect and desire for peaceful coexistence on their part. Frequently though, they don't give a shit at best and are at worst seriously hostile.

Also, note that nearly everybody in this thread with a bad word to say about travellers is talking from experience. Ignoring facts in the name of tolerance just denigrates tolerance more than anything else.

 

[Ham_authority95]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

I guess it's a European thing, among young people anyway. In the US, the people who say openly say things like "Mexicans steal our jobs! Lets shoot them at the border!" are old right-wing nutjobs.

But to have young people on a generally socially liberal gaming website saying things like this, is rather strange to me.

 

[seamusotorain]

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

There's 41 million people of African Americans and 50 million Hispanic/Latinos in America. There are only 22,4369 Travellers in Ireland, and between 15,000 to 30,000 in the UK. I guess it's easier to be prejudiced against a smaller section of society?

EDIT: Reading posts above me, I'd agree that no other ethnic group seems to close itself off from outsiders as much as Travellers do.

 

[AlloAllo]

Congratulations!

Uh, yeah, that's pretty much it. A Gipsy caravan settled near our house, one year and... well, to tell the truth I never heard of them. I just kinda knew they were there.
So, what do I think of them? They're people. That's pretty much it.

Still, congratulations to your sister! If she's happy the way she is, that's really the only thing anyone should say ^O^

 

[Bonham79]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

Gypsies are not a minority like black people or Mexicans in that they genuinely have a different way of life. Which would be fine, if their intersections with other people's ways of life didn't involve violence and stealing quite as much.

But there it is, because they are a gypsy, it sounds like it's assumed they steal and are violent. That's similar to me saying that since someone has a gay lifestyle, they enjoy having wild unprotected sex in gay bars and probably has AIDs. I'm not being critical, i'm just trying to understand this whole thing, it's just kinda weird from my end.

 

[Bonham79]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

I guess it's a European thing, among young people anyway. In the US, the people who say openly say things like "Mexicans steal our jobs! Lets shoot them at the border!" are old right-wing nutjobs.

But to have young people on a generally socially liberal gaming website saying things like this, is rather strange to me.

Same here, I'm pretty sure these are the same guys who rage on the U.S. whenever FOX is on the air.

 

[Ham_authority95]

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

There's 41 million people of African Americans and 50 million Hispanic/Latinos in America. There are only 22,4369 Travellers in Ireland, and between 15,000 to 30,000 in the UK. I guess it's easier to be prejudiced against a smaller section of society?

I guess I kind of get it now. A smaller target is easy, and since Gypsies apparently live so hugely different, it would be even easier.

 

[Jazoni89]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

Gypsies are not a minority like black people or Mexicans in that they genuinely have a different way of life. Which would be fine, if their intersections with other people's ways of life didn't involve violence and stealing quite as much.

But there it is, because they are a gypsy, it sounds like it's assumed they steal and are violent. That's similar to me saying that since someone has a gay lifestyle, they enjoy having wild unprotected sex in gay bars and probably has AIDs. I'm not being critical, i'm just trying to understand this whole thing, it's just kinda weird from my end.

Us Brits love to hate pretty much.

We hate conservatives, People with disabilities, other countries.

So everything really...

 

[Craorach]

But there it is, because they are a gypsy, it sounds like it's assumed they steal and are violent. That's similar to me saying that since someone has a gay lifestyle, they enjoy having wild unprotected sex in gay bars and probably has AIDs. I'm not being critical, i'm just trying to understand this whole thing, it's just kinda weird from my end.

I can understand why it would seem odd, but for one thing it is important to remember that most Travellers are not Gypsies (as in Rom) they are simply people who have either made a decision to drop off the grid, or their parents did. The huge surge in numbers of these people only came in the last few decades.

Most genuine Gypsies I have met are actually wonderful people.. if abit unorthodox. We had several groups of them where I grew up, and the saying was always "A Gypsy is your best friend, or your worst enemy" and so long as you treated them with respect all was fine. they obeyed the law, and respected people around them, and didn't put themselves in the way of the life of the locals.

Travellers are.. well.. see my earlier post.

 

[Seventh Actuality]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

Gypsies are not a minority like black people or Mexicans in that they genuinely have a different way of life. Which would be fine, if their intersections with other people's ways of life didn't involve violence and stealing quite as much.

But there it is, because they are a gypsy, it sounds like it's assumed they steal and are violent. That's similar to me saying that since someone has a gay lifestyle, they enjoy having wild unprotected sex in gay bars and probably has AIDs. I'm not being critical, i'm just trying to understand this whole thing, it's just kinda weird from my end.

It might look that way, but I don't think that's what anybody here is saying. There are people who are legitimately racist against gypsies, and fuck those people, because fuck racists, period, but a hell of a lot of good, decent people who aren't out to have a go at anybody have had bad experiences with gypsies, and they shouldn't have to keep quiet to avoid looking bad. It's sad, but the stereotypes in this case are frequently true.

I'm pretty sure most people posting in this thread would agree that any gypsy/traveller who doesn't act this way is fine, though, and it sounds like the one marrying the OP's sister is one of those.

 

[Ham_authority95]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

I guess it's a European thing, among young people anyway. In the US, the people who say openly say things like "Mexicans steal our jobs! Lets shoot them at the border!" are old right-wing nutjobs.

But to have young people on a generally socially liberal gaming website saying things like this, is rather strange to me.

Same here, I'm pretty sure these are the same guys who rage on the U.S. whenever FOX is on the air.

Yeah, if I took a shot for every FOX news related hate thread in the past month, I would die.

This thread is an important to observe and learn from, especially to you sociology students. Take some notes, now.

 

[Jazoni89]

But there it is, because they are a gypsy, it sounds like it's assumed they steal and are violent. That's similar to me saying that since someone has a gay lifestyle, they enjoy having wild unprotected sex in gay bars and probably has AIDs. I'm not being critical, i'm just trying to understand this whole thing, it's just kinda weird from my end.

I can understand why it would seem odd, but for one thing it is important to remember that most Travellers are not Gypsies (as in Rom) they are simply people who have either made a decision to drop off the grid, or their parents did. The huge surge in numbers of these people only came in the last few decades.

Most genuine Gypsies I have met are actually wonderful people.. if abit unorthodox. We had several groups of them where I grew up, and the saying was always "A Gypsy is your best friend, or your worst enemy" and so long as you treated them with respect all was fine. they obeyed the law, and respected people around them, and didn't put themselves in the way of the life of the locals.

Travellers are.. well.. see my earlier post.

I would say he's a more of a traditional gypsy like you pointed out, than the modern rude boi gypsy you get a lot these days.

Here's a picture of him (I'm sure he won't mind me posting a pic of him on here).

Spoiler

See...

 

[Bonham79]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

Gypsies are not a minority like black people or Mexicans in that they genuinely have a different way of life. Which would be fine, if their intersections with other people's ways of life didn't involve violence and stealing quite as much.

But there it is, because they are a gypsy, it sounds like it's assumed they steal and are violent. That's similar to me saying that since someone has a gay lifestyle, they enjoy having wild unprotected sex in gay bars and probably has AIDs. I'm not being critical, i'm just trying to understand this whole thing, it's just kinda weird from my end.

It might look that way, but I don't think that's what anybody here is saying. There are people who are legitimately racist against gypsies, and fuck those people, because fuck racists, period, but a hell of a lot of good, decent people who aren't out to have a go at anybody have had bad experiences with gypsies, and they shouldn't have to keep quiet to avoid looking bad. It's sad, but the stereotypes in this case are frequently true.

I'm pretty sure most people posting in this thread would agree that any gypsy/traveller who doesn't act this way is fine, though, and it sounds like the one marrying the OP's sister is one of those.

K, i can see that. I guess it just seemed a bit weird translated over the pacific.

 

[Seventh Actuality]

As an American who has no idea about the whole Gypsie thing, this thread seems very inflammatory. We've had tons of threads about people hating on prejudiced groups, and now we have this thread that says that all Gypsies are sexist and steal to live.

This reminds me of comments that people make about Mexicans here in the US.

I'm sure you have very good reasons to say these things, but maybe you shouldn't make it seem so unfairly prejudiced.

That's what I'm saying. I mean, here if we say black people and mexicans are all drug sellers and gang members, we instantly sound like prejudiced idiots. But this gypsy hate seems real normal.

I guess it's a European thing, among young people anyway. In the US, the people who say openly say things like "Mexicans steal our jobs! Lets shoot them at the border!" are old right-wing nutjobs.

But to have young people on a generally socially liberal gaming website saying things like this, is rather strange to me.

Same here, I'm pretty sure these are the same guys who rage on the U.S. whenever FOX is on the air.

Yeah, if I took a shot for every FOX news related hate thread in the past month, I would die.

This thread is an important to observe and learn from, especially to you sociology students. Take some notes, now.

Yeah, fuck it, you could try to understand a complex and morally grey problem that doesn't exist in your culture from the perspective of the people it affects, or you could just assume whatever sits easiest with your ideology is true.

 

[Tanakh]

--snip--

Mate, I don't want to be an smartypants, but it seems you still are prejudiced against Travellers. In your entire OP you didn't said anything about the guy, except that he is a traveller, didn't said if he is a good person, if he treats your sister right, if he likes chicken or beef, if he reads or likes videogames.

And i am surprised about all this discrimination against gypsies. They sure as heck have morals and values, that one of them is cheating on the mofos that have been grinding them since centuries and that have periodically genocide them it's hardly surprising.

 

[Actual]

But there it is, because they are a gypsy, it sounds like it's assumed they steal and are violent. That's similar to me saying that since someone has a gay lifestyle, they enjoy having wild unprotected sex in gay bars and probably has AIDs. I'm not being critical, i'm just trying to understand this whole thing, it's just kinda weird from my end.

They're not a race, they're a group of people who've decided to live outside the law. They can be black, white, Chinese, or Hispanic. Though to be fair they tend to be exclusively white because they're racist.

It's a lot more like saying "all gang members are stealing, violent, criminals." You could probably find a nice gang member but you'd have to look damn hard.