Mincéirs Whiden is a Traveller only organisation with over 800 members spread throughout Ireland both north and south of the border. Mincéirs Whiden, Cant for Travellers Talking was set up as safe space where Travellers can come together to talk about issues affecting our community and create ways as a community to deal with these issues and overcome Travellers social exclusion within Irish society.
Mincéirs Whiden Aims
• To Promote Traveller identity and culture
• To have Travellers recognised as an ethnic group within the island of Ireland
• To promote a collective and political platform for Travellers
• Be accepting and embrace diversity within the Traveller community
Mincéirs Whiden works in solidarity with other nomadic and excluded groups both at a National and international level and with local and national organisations in an effort to achieve common objectives.
Who can join?
MW is a Traveller only space, membership is only open to Travellers i.e. one or more of your parents or grandparents are Travellers and agree to term of membership, there is no intention on MW’s part to appear discriminatory in its exclusion of non-Travellers; however the organisation specifically provides a need at this time to have a Traveller only space. MW acknowledges the incredible work of many non-Travellers who have dedicated their lives towards equality and justice and worked tirelessly with Travellers down through the years to achieve this aim.
Why should you join?
MW believes that it is very important that Travellers come together in a united way to challenge the social exclusion and racism still faced by Travellers in Ireland today, and create a strategy to promote and protect Traveller culture and identity from further erosion. Together the Traveller community can give each other support to create a strong voice in order to have a say in shaping the future of the community, a community that is independent, vibrant and proud of its identity and heritage.
Additional info
• MW is a voluntary organization and has no core funding and operates on very limited resources. It does have is a wealth of collective knowledge and experience with many of its member’s seasoned campaigners who are involved with both local and national organizations. Because of this it is very effective and is an excellent learning environment for Travellers who want to become involved with Traveller rights and issues.
• With MW’s text messaging service we advise members of upcoming events including TV programs relative to Travellers. This service has proved very successful in keeping MW’s members informed on current issues.
Further information on joining Mincéirs Whiden is available on www.minceirswhiden.org or by Email info@minceirswhiden.org
