Newport's shame - Travellers' Times

MAKING HISTORY
June will be National History Month for
Gypsy, Roma and Travelling people.
The idea comes from the National Association
of Traveller Teachers and the Advisory Council
for the Education of Romany and other
Travellers (the Travellers’ champion, Lord
Avebury, is their president). The Children’s
Commissioner, Professor Sir Al Aynsley-Green, is
supporting the idea: “Gypsy, Traveller and Roma
children face discrimination and are not yet
achieving their full potential,” he told TT.
“National History Month will provide an excellent
opportunity to challenge that discrimination,
deepening knowledge of their history and
dispelling myths, ignorance and prejudice.”
Do you have a historic photo of your family?
Send a copy to Travellers’ Times for our
special feature, In Our Time.
TT 6
reviews
ARTS& CULTURE
Carys Gwilym and
Carwyn Jones in
Remembering Johnny
REMEMBERING
JOHNNY
Huey Delaney (11), Nelina McCann
(11) and Chantelle Purcell (13), above,
were in the audience at Wrexham.
They remember Johnny well. Huey, Nelina and
Chantelle live at Ruthin Road Caravan Site and
attend St Joseph’s in Wrexham. Chantelle, who
recalls Johnny as “happy, kind and helpful”
said the play was “good, but sad”.
Nelina explained: “The reason the actors
brought the play into school was to show
people not to call other people names.
It’s a good thing for other children to learn.”
Chantelle didn’t think the performance went
far enough: “More people should see it:
they should do a DVD.”
Heroes by Ann Perry
MODEL WORKER
21-year-old Irish Traveller Shirley Joyce
is a community development worker for
Southwark Travellers Action Group
(STAG). “I’m also a model,” explains Shirley.
“I was picked to go to China to be Miss Irish in
2007, I’ve done a catwalk with Kate Moss, and
have appeared in films with famous people like
Danny Dyer.” STAG, which produces its own
magazine, The Southwark Traveller Times with
the local Traveller Education Service, has
brought out a New Year calendar with photos
taken by Syntia and Monalisa Waskowska,
Natasha O’Brien, and Breeda Corcoran. Call
STAG’s Ann-Marie O’Brien if you want a copy
✆ 020 7639 1823.
It’s not too late to order your 2008 Derbyshire
Gypsy Liaison Group calendar with plenty of
colour pictures and horse fair dates. Send £10
to Robert Dawson, 188 Alfreton Road,
Blackwell, Alfreton, DE55 5JH or email
bob@robertdsawson.co.uk
ARTS& CULTURE
Johnny Delaney died after
he was attacked in May
2003. Late last year the
Welsh theatre company,
Cwmni’r Frân Wen, toured
their play, Johnny Delaney,
around schools in north
and mid Wales.
“Johnny’s story is a lasting
reminder of how racial
intolerances, which still
prevails in today’s society,
can lead to acts of
mindless violence,” says
Cwmni’r Fran Wen.
PHOTO: Wynn Jones
FINE FOOTWORK
Thirteen-year-old Lee Smith from the
Blackwell site in South Cambridgeshire
is in his second season with the
Cambridge Musketeers. Now he has told
his story, along with Jenny Webb of Willingham
and Tom Webb from Cottenham, as part of the
Faces of the Fen Project. The three ‘digital
stories’ – a voice-over with film and photos –
have been recorded on DVD. Details from Amy
Wormald at the Cottenham Village College
✆ 01954 288944 amy@start-arts.org.uk
Heroes (Barrington Stoke www.barringtonstoke.co.uk, £5.99) is aimed as a quick read for older
readers. Ideal for new readers with a reading age of around eight. Mandy Allen, a volunteer with Hull
GATE organises Saturday Youth Sessions. She checked it out for TT: “The book has two stories, the
first set in the First World War and the second story in Afghanistan. The first story was very easy to
read and I really enjoyed it. The second story was harder because there was lots of big words that
I've never come across. I’d recommend this book to men but it's not really a women's book.”
GUEST EDITORS
The children from
Priory Learning Centre
Guest editors for this Young
Times page are the young
people from Priory Learning
Centre in Pembrokeshire, seen
here checking out the stories
and choosing their favourites.
Breaking Boundaries
Levi Smith joined South Nutfield Cricket Club at the
end of 2006 showing enormous promise and a very
quick arm, writes Lucy Donavon.
His first match was against one of
the tougher teams and he rose
to the challenge, batting at
number five and scoring a
rapid 22 runs, including
the only six of the game.
His bowling was just as
lethal, taking two wickets,
with devastating accuracy.
Lee is totally committed
to the game and always puts
in 100%.
He is one of the best fielders in the club, strong as an ox and
fast! Nothing gets past him, and he has never dropped a catch!
“Lee has been a breathe of fresh air to our club. We are proud to
have him playing for us and he has a bright future ahead.”
YOUNGTIMES
Family Fun
There was fun and frolics for these young people at Blackwell in Kings Hedges, Cambridge
last autumn when, for Family Learning Week, Maria Lam worked with mums to make
knight’s shields, princess hats and plenty of healthy food to eat with the children.
YoungTimes
Dressed for the Fair: sisters from
Southampton snapped at last
autumn’s Stow Fair by Joanna
Jacobs.
Tae Kwon
Do champs
I’m Leanne from Pershore and I
would like to tell you about my
son Kevin Smith and his cousin
Craig Hall, both eleven. They started
Tae Kwon Do in March 2003. Kevin has
won the ITF British Championship Fight Night.
He got his Black Belt in June and Craig is
trying for his any day now. Their trainer Leo
Withers has been kind and helpful: we are
Travellers, but he treats us all the same.
Above, Kevin with Craig, Shady Hall,
Harry Lock and Leo Withers.
Congrats to former Brynteg
pupil Shannon Treharne
from Bynea, Swansea on
passing your Grade 1 violin
Becky Price from
Pembrooke’s Priory
Centre checks out the
last TT. But it was
Kirby Jones who
spotted our missing
caption on page 3.
Sorry Kirby. Just for
the record: Pupils from
the Priory Learning
Centre visited London last
summer to visit the theatre,
shop at Harrods and see the Crown Jewels too!
Savvy
Chavvy?
Are you into
Bebo, Facebook
or MySpace?
A new website where
all young Gypsies and
Travellers can share
their lives, music,
pictures and films has
been set up to help
young Gypsies and
Travellers across
Britain keep in touch.
See what's online
so far at:
www.savvychavvy.com
For many years
Travellers took the jeers
And kept them deep inside.
‘You tramp, you tinker,
You Gypsie, you minger’
Was all they would ever call
But they never knew us Travellers,
No, not at all.
For we are human just like you’s
And we will stand and shout
our views.
For we are proud of who we are
And we will shout it near and far
Because God shall be one with
the final say
And he’ll never say the Travellers
are to blame
Because we are all the same.
Nan Joyce
YOUNGTIMES
TT 7