I AM TRAVELLER
Highlighting the Importance of Traveller Culture
By Bryanna Sweeney
Image By Ciaran Carthy
As part of the ‘Travellers’ Journey’ exhibition, a panel event was organised by the National Museum of Ireland in Turlough Park, County Mayo. The event, which took place in February, saw prominent members of the Traveller community being invited to discuss what it means to be a Traveller in Ireland.
The panellists included Travellers who are a positive force of change within their community; including such people as Mary Collins from the Mayo Traveller Support Group (MTSG), Hugh Friel from the Donegal Traveller Project, and Oein DeBhairduin from the Irish Traveller Movement (ITM). The speakers addressed a packed audience, touching on issues regarding their lives and their experiences of racism and discrimination; as well as matters relating on to the importance of preserving items and traditions of cultural heritage.
Senator Colette Kelleher who chaired the event; is herself a member of the Traveller Oireachtas Group (TOG), who hope to improve Traveller education, health and employment. “What I’ve learned is that [the Traveller] community is a small tight-knit community and yet it is many communities,” said Senator Kelleher, before introducing the following speakers.
Mary Collins, who is a proud Traveller woman from Claremorris, spoke passionately about her journey with the MTSG. “I am a Traveller, a Traveller woman and a Traveller mother with young children. One of my biggest dreams is my children getting an equal education and having greater opportunities in the future where I did not,” said Mary, whom, like most Travellers, left school after her Junior Certificate.
However, Mary did go on to complete two courses at third level as a mature student, while raising her family and continuing as a Community Health Worker with the MTSG. Later, she trained as a facilitator of the Common Sense Parenting Programme. The hard work and perseverance paid off when she and her co-workers were invited to speak at Dublin Castle. “Last May, we were honoured to attend a conference called, ‘Strengthening Parents Support Through Learning Together,’ and this was the 3rd National Parenting Conference. It was a great achievement for [us] to be part of such a big conference.”
Seeing how Traveller culture and tradition had disappeared in her area, Mary noted a drop in numbers on religious days such as Reek Sunday, where many people including Travellers climb Croagh Patrick. “It’s very upsetting as religion is a very big part of our culture,” she said. Attendance to the National Novena at the holy shrine of Knock has also been affected. Mary explained that conflict between local residents and the council around space and facilities made it difficult to continue this tradition, as the site is not able to accommodate such large numbers.
Having noted the importance of collecting memories and items relevant to Traveller heritage, Mary became the catalyst for the Travellers’ Journey exhibition. She visited Traveller families to collect precious items and recorded spoken accounts of their culture to be displayed in the museum. “At first people thought their objects would not be returned and some were shy about loaning the objects. Now when they see their objects so carefully displayed, they will be more interested in future exhibitions,” noted Mary, who developed a strong relationship with both the Museum and those who’ve visited. “It makes me feel so proud and (have) so much pride in my culture. I hope that they will have a greater understanding in our way of life,” she said.
Hugh Friel is a Men’s Development worker with the Donegal Traveller Movement (DTM), working with many different committees on a national level; including the National Traveller Organisation Group and the National Traveller Advisory forum. “Being a Traveller is very important to me. I grew up in Killybegs [and] had a hard childhood because like many young people, you’re isolated in school from the general population because you’re known as the knacker.”
While emphasising the importance of education, Hugh criticised the current system for excluding young Travellers from a young age. Hugh believes it’s easy for Travellers to give up as it’s possibly expected (of them); especially as there may be a view that being a member of the community could have a negative impact; especially when it comes to the wider society. And with reduced timetables becoming the norm for young Travellers, it is difficult to determine how much school they are missing.
Hugh has felt the effects of social exclusion and how this has resulted in poor mental health, in particular amongst Traveller men. “You sit back and think what happened to you as a young person. There’s a major crisis in our community.” In addition, while referring to problems with drug abuse and suicide, Hugh said, “These things lead back to how you are treated in society.”
Hugh also noticed a decline in Travellers moving. “In Donegal, one time you would have seen loads of Travellers on the side of the road. We had 130 to 160 nomadic Travellers that used to come in the summer time. We don’t have one now. It’s a novelty to see a Traveller on the side of the road,” he said, emphasising that “Our culture is being eradicated very slowly. We’re Travellers. We’re not settled. We didn’t choose to be settled. This country chose to settle Travellers,” he said, referring to the restrictions imposed by the Trespass Act.
Oein DeBhairduin works with ITM and the Traveller Oireachtas Group (TOG) at Leinster House pushing the Traveller History and Culture Bill, which hopes to bring Traveller history and culture to the primary and post primary school curriculum. Addressing attendees, Oein said, he sees his culture as being “what has been given to me and what do I hold and hope to pass on.” He is confident that education will help bridge the gap between his community and the rest of the country. “I have a very sincere sympathy for people from the wider community who do not know how beautiful Travellers are. You don’t know our language. You don’t know our songs. You don’t know our rituals, our customs, our nomadism and our celebrations. You don’t know all sorts of things,” said Oein, who is well known for his knowledge of folklore and speaking in Cant. Adding, “You don’t know the fear, the suspicion, [and] all those things that very humanly fill those faces.”
Encouraging everyone to spend time viewing the exhibition and to reflect on the pieces collected, Oein said, “All those items have descriptions and that gives an insight into a whole world of untold stories and experiences.”
When speaking with Lynn Scarff, Director of the National Museum of Ireland, before the event began, Oein remarked that, “These are ongoing long conversations. These are conversations that will continue and continue,” with Lynn agreeing that, “The museum should be a place where we have [these] long conversations, where we build relationships with people in our community and make sure that our spaces are for everyone.”
