Manchester: No More Apologies – It’s Time to Listen and Act by Claire Rice

Greater Manchester Police (GMP) has faced a backlash for issuing a dispersal order that effectively racially profiled Gypsy and Traveller families, barring them from Manchester city centre and its Christmas markets. Children were stopped at the train station and forced onto trains to unknown destinations, sparking outrage over their treatment. Disturbing footage shows a young man pleading with officers outside the Arndale Centre before being thrown to the ground, kicked, and having his hair pulled. Arrested on assault charges, he was later released without charge after video evidence emerged, highlighting the disproportionate and discriminatory policing of Gypsies and Travellers.

The recent apology from GMP has been met with mixed reactions—and for good reason. 
The GMP first apologised to Gypsy/Traveller representatives at a meeting on 6th December, and then released the apology in a public statement. The apology reads: “During the meeting, we expressed our regret at the distress and upset the events of 23 November caused and pledged to our commitment to the ongoing review of complaints by our professional standards unit.”

To be clear, the apology was not for the decision to implement the dispersal order or the treatment Gypsy and Traveller families received, it was for the “distress and upset” that the enforcement of the dispersal order caused. This distinction only deepens the frustration. For those of us who live this reality every single day, it’s clear: words are cheap. What good is an apology that doesn’t acknowledge wrongdoing or prevent the same humiliation, the same prejudice, and the same injustice from happening again?

This is not an isolated incident. It is part of a pattern—a pattern where Gypsies and Travellers are vilified, criminalised, and dehumanised by the very institutions meant to serve and protect us. Every apology issued without meaningful change feels like a slap in the face, a hollow gesture that pacifies public outrage while ignoring the systemic hostility that fuels such actions.

Let’s not sugar-coat it: Gypsies and Travellers are among the most marginalised and misunderstood communities in the UK. We are seen through a lens of prejudice, our lives distorted into tired stereotypes that fuel fear and hatred. We are either romanticised as relics of a bygone era or demonised as criminals and nuisances. Rarely, if ever, are we treated as human beings with dignity, rights, and lived experiences worth hearing.

And let’s be clear—society doesn’t know us. Not really. The media paints us as headlines, not people. Politicians use us as scapegoats, not constituents. Even the institutions that interact with us treat us as problems to be managed, not as communities with voices and needs. This ignorance perpetuates a cycle of discrimination that affects every aspect of our lives—from education to housing, healthcare to employment.

So, we ask: who gets to define us? Who gets to tell our stories? The answer, too often, is anyone but us. Academics study us. The media misrepresents us. Councils and police act against us without ever understanding who we are or what we need.

This has to stop.

Gypsies and Travellers need a platform—a space where those with lived experience can speak for themselves, unfiltered and uninfluenced by outsiders. We need to be the ones telling our stories, shaping the narrative, and demanding the respect and rights we have been denied for far too long. This isn’t just a request; it’s a necessity. Because until society hears directly from us—our truths, our struggles, our resilience—the prejudice and ignorance will persist.

We don’t need apologies; we need action. That means creating spaces where Gypsies and Travellers can educate the public, challenge harmful stereotypes, and hold institutions accountable. It means funding opportunities for our communities to lead conversations about who we are and what we stand for. It means shifting the power away from those who talk about us and giving it to those who can talk for us.

An apology without action is nothing more than a publicity stunt. It does not undo the damage caused by years of mistreatment. It does not erase the humiliation felt during raids, evictions, and routine harassment. And it does not address the systemic failures that allow such incidents to happen again and again.

If institutions are truly serious about change, they need to start by listening—not to academics, journalists, or so-called experts, but to the people who live this reality every day. Listen to the mothers fighting for their children’s education in the face of discrimination. Listen to the elders who have seen generations of their families pushed to the margins. Listen to the young people who are trying to navigate a world that sees them as “other.”

And don’t just listen—act.

It’s time for society to face the truth: Gypsies and Travellers are not going away. We will not stay silent. We will not accept apologies that mean nothing. We demand respect. We demand justice. We demand a seat at the table where decisions are made about us.

For too long, others have spoken for us. It’s time we speak for ourselves—and it’s time society listens. Because change won’t come from more apologies. Change will come when Gypsies and Travellers are given the space to tell our own stories, in our own voices, on our own terms.

By Claire Rice

(Photograph: Manchester Traveller rights rally 06/12/2024 by Eszter Halasi for the Travellers’ Times)