Page 53 - JUSTICE Tackling Racial Injustice - Children and the Youth Justice System

officers view the majority of GRT people as “criminals” 162 and details how
discrimination is brushed off by those in authority. 163 This bias manifests itself
in many other ways. For instance, we are aware that should some police forces
be called to a GRT site for a minor disturbance, they will arrive with far more
officers than the immediate situation requires. GRT heritage is held in such
low regard that some police officers hide their own heritage, so as not to be on
the wrong end of bias.

2.63 It is clear to us that such bias is prevalent throughout society, with GRT people
often depicted negatively by film, media, and politicians. This has allowed
prejudicial views to take hold and become, if not widely accepted, at least
normalised to such an extent that they are not challenged or questioned. GRT
people generally present as White, perhaps explaining why some do not
consider them to be an ethnic group. Moreover, the small size of the GRT
population means that the extent and rate of negative outcomes GRT people
face are not readily understood.

2.64 The inherent societal bias GRT people face is similar to that of other BAME
groups, resulting in overwhelmingly more negative criminal justice outcomes.
When decision-makers come face to face with GRT children, some will be less
likely to consider rehabilitative options. It is likely that the differential
educational achievement within the community as a whole (itself a
consequence of bias), contributes toward a lack of voice within the justice
process. Moreover, the fractious relationship means that GRT communities do
not consider the police will meet their expectations of fairness, leading to a
lack of engagement in many societal systems. This lack of voice and
engagement is particularly pronounced in GRT children, and compounds their
inherent vulnerability.

2.65 Against this background, we welcome the YJB’s decision to improve its data
gathering to include GRT as a distinct category. This should be followed in all
statistical studies undertaken by government bodies. Moreover, we urge

162 “I was talking to a police officer the other day and he said to me, ‘why are the majority of Gypsies
and Travellers criminals?” – Female, Irish Traveller, in, The Traveller Movement, The preliminary
report: policing by consent: Understanding and improving relations between Gypsies, Roma, Irish
Travellers and the Police, 2018, p. 4.
163 “Somebody made a comment very quietly…‘dead Gypsie, good Gypsie’… I complained to the
sergeant and he [said] … ‘they are not racist, they are just very frustrated” – male constable in ibid.

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