A Civil Society Perspective on Anti-Traveller and Anti-Roma Hate: Connecting Online to On the Street

Abstract

The absence of hate crime legislation in Ireland is a glaring anomaly. Without it, Ireland stands virtually alone in its silence with respect to protecting vulnerable communities from the harms of this particular form of violence. Perry (cited in Schweppe et al. 2014) ‘Roma’ is an umbrella term, used across European institutions to refer to many ethnic minority groups, which share a nomadic history, including Roma, Irish Travellers, Dom, Sinti and others (United Nations 2013). According to the 2011 Census, there are 29,573 Travellers in the Republic of Ireland; Travellers account for just 0.6% of the total population (Central Statistics Office 2012). Travellers are indigenous to Ireland and have been documented as part of Irish history for centuries (Ní Shúinéir 1994).

The absence of hate crime legislation in Ireland is a glaring anomaly. Without it, Ireland stands virtually alone in its silence with respect to protecting vulnerable communities from the harms of this particular form of violence.