Gypsy, Roma, Traveller Displacement

This chapter explores displacement as lived experience of Gypsy, Roma, Traveller (GRT) people and troubles the notion of ‘home.’. Underpinned by a narrative inquiry methodology with an advocacy/participatory world view, it highlights the injustices inherent in a nomadic lifestyle through the reflections of Mary, a member of the GRT community with displacement experience. Four themes emerged from the data: the significance of stopping places; covert and overt displacement as a way of life; detachment from the displacement experiences, and displacement of identity. It emerged that home for GRT people is found in following the footsteps of ancestors and everyday homemaking rituals influenced by their heritage. The chapter also considers the difference between nomadism and displacement. It proposes that GRT families should not categorised as refugees or other displaced people because nomadism is fundamental to their identity, whether they are housed or not. It suggests that non-GRT people can inadvertently intensify feelings of lost identity by assuming that a housed life should be imposed on GRT families ‘for their own good,’ unaware that this significantly contributes to their physical and psychological displacement. It concludes with a reflection on the need to record these narratives before they are lost.