So... My sister is marrying a traveller

[lobster1077]

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.

Nothing here is being assumed. People are referencing first hand experience. I being Irish have had a few encounters with travellers and not one of those was a pleasant experience.

 

[Jazoni89]

--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.

In my OP no, but the reason for that is that I couldn't find a suitable place to put a sentence about him.

If you read my other posts however, you can find that I really do like the guy.

 

[Craorach]

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.

Congratulations to your sister then. I have to ask, does he consider himself a Gypsy, or a Traveller? The one's I knew very firmly kept a line between the two definitions, because of the wide spread behaviour of the second.

 

[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.

Us Brits love to hate pretty much.

We hate conservatives, People with disabilities, other countries.

So everything really...

We have the same in the U.S. So many people, so much hate. Why did we ever fight each other, we could have learned so much. Congrulations on the sister's marriage. I'm assuming your the poster because of the picture.

 

[Jazoni89]

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.

Congratulations to your sister then. I have to ask, does he consider himself a Gypsy, or a Traveller? The one's I knew very firmly kept a line between the two definitions, because of the wide spread behaviour of the second.

He has always referred himself as a Gypsy.

 

[Seventh Actuality]

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.

So gypsies are allowed to be racist against everybody else, but it's pointing this out that is "discrimination".

Cool.

 

[krazykidd]

Wait ? These people still exist ? Where do i sign up! No , seriously how do i meet these people and how do i join them?

 

[Bonham79]

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.

K, I'm getting confused, some people are saying gypsis are Romani's and some Irish, and then some are saying they are just a british mixture of hobos and hippies. Pl

 

[lobster1077]

Wait ? These people still exist ? Where do i sign up! No , seriously how do i meet these people and how do i join them?

Hope you're fond of caravans.

 

[Jazoni89]

Wait ? These people still exist ? Where do i sign up! No , seriously how do i meet these people and how do i join them?

Find a good gypsy woman, and settle down with her. It's the easiest way of getting into the Gypsy lifestyle. Unless you like fighting to prove your worth.

Also, do you like Caravans? You know those things you went in when you went on holiday to that resort, yeah. You will be living in them for the rest of your life!

 

[seamusotorain]

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.

You basically have all the necessary ingredients for prejudice - a group that has a radically different way of life, that mostly keeps to itself and is an extremely small minority.

My mum, who is an otherwise perfectly rational person, has absolutely no time for Travellers. Cleaning up a cinema screen after a load of Travellers have spat all over the floor - and deliberately waited so myself and the two girls I was with could see that they did it - is no fun. Almost everyone in Ireland and the UK seems to have a story about Travellers involving some kind of crime or anti-social behaviour. When you have such a small minority, it's difficult to blame a minority within that minority.

I guess the only way the prejudice will stop is if we learn more about Traveller culture from a young age, and Travellers teach their kids to not have such disdain for settled peoples cultures and laws. Pride in your culture is one thing -ignoring the law because you see yourself as above it is another thing entirely.

 

[lobster1077]

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.

K, I'm getting confused, some people are saying gypsis are Romani's and some Irish, and then some are saying they are just a british mixture of hobos and hippies. Pl

Romanian gypsy culture, Irish travellers, British travellers. All different groups.

 

[Mosesj]

My sister is marrying a traveller next month after being with him for the past five years throughout her late teens to her early twenties. They have had a child together, and I'm am a proud uncle.

Now, This might be strange to some of you, but I'm more than okay with this, in fact over the years her Fiancee has changed the way I feel about gypsies, and Irish travellers. When I was a teenager, I had a very negative opinion on Gypsies citing them as Pikey's, and freaks who dodge paying council taxes by living in caravans for the whole of their lives. What I didn't know however was the sense of community, and the sense of togetherness that seems lost in most communities in England. They do it because they feel it's their way of life, and I personally shouldn't be the judge of that.

It's no secret that gypsies and Irish travellers are not high on the social spectrum, but I feel my sister has found her place in the gypsy community, and I am happy for her. She has decided to move into a caravan in the next couple of years with her fiancée like how he has for most of his life. In fact, he has expressed to me that he feels that living in a house seems strange and foreign to him, despite him having a flat now.

I do however express concerns about the lifestyle, not for her, but her daughter. Their is a lot of discrimination when it comes to travellers, and I feel that she might get bullied in the future for the lifestyle she is in. Which might make her feel detached from mainstream living, which may lead to crime, and other negative social outcomes.

When she get's married, she is not only making a lifelong commitment to love, but a lifestyle commitment which will affect her future, and the way she lives. It is a lot to commit to, and I wish her all the best. I feel their love is genuine enough for them to see this through.

To add conversation, what do you feel about gypsies, and Irish travellers. How would you feel if a family member was going into this kind of lifestyle, have you got any questions for me, let me know what you think, but keep it clean.

She might even start calling me a Gorger soon...

Hmmm, some people are the way they are, no way to get past it.

Just watch out if she says the guy left to go fight saint dane on different territories though, he might die. Just kidding, that was a joke.

 

[Spitfire]

Being that I'm Romanian, and I live in a country that has become infamous for its notorious Gypsy community, I'm afraid I don't have a lot of good things to say about them. For what it's worth, however, to the best of my knowledge, the mustache-wearing, caravan-travelling type of Gypsies, usually keep to themselves, and aren't really known to be troublemakers. The ones that are, usually live in urban areas, and are either uneducated or part of gangs, or both. At least that's how it is here.

Haven't had much contact with the Romani, but the Irish caravan people I've met... were really creepy (I don't know why I felt that way), and had a habit of stealing from the store I worked at.

Dear god, tell me I didn't read that right. That may be a PC term for them, but it's a term made up by ignorant foreigners (I don't mean you) who don't know jack about anything.
Allow me to explain. Do you know what Romanians call themselves in their language? Romani. Now, why is this term used to describe the Gypsies, a community of people who originally came from India, and are currently spread out all over Europe? That's absurd. That would be like if all the Jews were called Deutsch, simply because they were somewhat more numerous in Germany at one point in time.

Sorry for the rant, just had to get that out there.

 

[classygangster]

I read that as "So...My sister is marrying a time traveller"

I had to reread it more than once, to read it properly.

dude thats what he meant

 

[Bonham79]

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.

K, I'm getting confused, some people are saying gypsis are Romani's and some Irish, and then some are saying they are just a british mixture of hobos and hippies. Pl

Romanian gypsy culture, Irish travellers, British travellers. All different groups.

And are all of them the ones who are being cited for these, or is it a specific group?

 

[DanielBrown]

Got quite a few Romani and Finnish gypsies in Sweden, and to be honest I'm not fond of them. Mostly when you I spot them they're either shitfaced and loudmouthed or stealing stuff in stores... now, I'm positive there are kind gypsies and that they're a product by their envieroment but I still keep my distance.
My great grandfather was apparently an Indian gypsy though, so perhaps I'm a bit hypocritical.

As for the second question; I'd probably react the same way I did when found out my sister was moving to her boyfriend halfway across the country(she didn't tell me, my mom did... the day before she moved out -_-). I told her it was a stupid decision and gave my seal of disapproval, but didn't care much more than that. We've never been very close anyways. Don't have any contact with her at all anymore.

 

[Ham_authority95]

This is starting to make more sense now. When I think "Gypsie" I always think of some people in the countryside having no contact with people, and it becomes kind of shocking when you suddenly hear so many negative things about them.

I understand it more now, though. Americans don't get information like this very often, being thousands of miles away from Europe.

 

[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.

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.

Dangn't left my pencil in my other bag