John Connors: The Travellers

I didn't watch the program on TV but Mr Connors was on Anton Savage yesterday morning.. He's well spoken but he did spend the whole segment blaming the current crisis in the traveling community on settled people and the government. He portrait the traveling community as unfortunate victims who through all the adversity heaped against them - they are continuing the fight to preserve the true irish traveling ways and traditions..
He made absolutely no acknowledgment that perhaps traveler actions themselves alienate them from everyone.

One thing he did say that I agree with was that the loss of genuine work like tin pot repairs and knife sharpening had a detrimental affect on their ability to generate steady legitimate income. I feel however that following this there is no recognition that many or much of the community has since then turned to less than savory income streams and antisocial behaviour.

After the interview Anton said that he was getting many complaints about the fact that traveler crime wasn't mentioned at all, he asked about other interviewees and the fact that he hadn't mentioned organised crime or the IRA to the others.. I thought he was playing the easy get out by saying that, equally I wouldn't want a family involved in organised crime living near me same as any family involved in crime including travelers. During the troubles I equally intentionally avoided interaction with families involved in troubles..

Its not like settled people are accepting of every criminal and scumbag except those from the traveling community. I want nothing to do with such elements no matter their background and have instructed my children to avoid specific children from settled families for their long term benefit.

The lack of acknowledgment and willingness to shun their own who turn to crime and criminality is continuing to drive a wedge between the two communities. Rolling out the same old rhetoric of "its a small minority" each time has spun out, if its such a small minority then deal with them and let the apparently law abiding remainder become more acceptable. But no the curtains come down and the "its a small minority" is spoken, fingers are pointed at government policy as a cause for everything that is wrong in their community..

Until traveler representative groups are willing to grasp this issue and deal with it, nothing will change and travelers as a whole will be shunned by the rest of society.

I will not appologise for not accepting travelers as a whole. Not while they continually accept and hide the criminal element among them while expecting the rest of society to bow to their demands and fund a better lifestyle for them. Society only works where there is give and take, groups who take, take, take on their own terms only are laying a bleak path for themselves and there is no need for a guilt trip to be laid on the rest of us as a result.