Wagons roll for the Irish people’s Parade

Pavee campaigners for equal rights joined the Reclaim 1916 parade last Sunday on the 24th of April, despite an attempt by the Gardai to stop the horse and wagon accompanying the Traveller group from joining the parade.

 Sunday 24th of April 2016 is the 100th anniversary date of the start of the 1916 Rising in Ireland and a march and pageant was organised to ‘Reclaim 1916’ and to remember the founding Proclamation of the Republic promising an “equal and jut society.” 

A spokesperson from Pavee Point, who urged Travellers across Ireland to come and join the march, said:  “It is self-evident that one hundred years on we have not fulfilled the promise of the Proclamation and that, despite us having legislation for equality, we have not cherished all the children of the nation equally.”

A group of young Traveller men also took part in the televised Pageant that was part of the parade, in Croke Park, Dublin Football Club’s home ground.

However, says Pavee Point, the experience on the march was “marred” by the Gardaí stopping the horse and wagon at O’Connell Street for “Health & Safety reasons.” 

It resulted in Pavee Point having to pull the bow-top wagon to one side and wait until the end of the march to be able to bring the horse and wagon up O’Connell Street. 

“Although we were stopped only a few hundred metres from the end of the parade we felt it was important to finish the parade with the horse and wagon – important symbols of Traveller culture,” said Pavee Point. 

“We’re glad to report that we did make it onto O’Connell Street to take our rightful place – and we got great crowd support. After all it was the people’s parade.”