Persecution and passing of discriminatory acts continued systematically over the yeas as rulers changed. It was only in the late 18th century when Gypsy laws started getting slowly repelled. In the early 19th century circuses were first set up forming a separate group of showmen and in the late 20th century what the media called ‘New Age Travellers’ started taking to road.
Around the 1930’s, Roma people (also Gypsies) came to England. The government set up camps for those serving in the army which were shut down after the war. Industrialization in the 1960s made land less available for Gypsies to stay on and jobs too became scarce marginalising them further.
The Roma language descends directly from Sanskrit but words were picked up when the Gypsies travelled to various places.
CHANGIN TRENDS?
It was difficult to come across someone who had a strong opinion against travellers and was instead met with very politically correct answers but I did manage to come across people with fresh perspectives on the community.
Marylyn Royce and Marina Rob admit they grew up with negative images of travellers but that changed over the years. Even the authorities have sat up and taken notice of the issue of prejudice and social injustice. Brighton has set an example that the authority can work with society and the Gypsy community to create harmony.