Public representatives must be advocates for inclusion and not support bigotry and social exclusion, the head of the Labour Party in Galway has said after controversial comments were made by a city councillor last week about the alleged incompatability of Traveller and settled cultures.
Last week, Fianna Fail councillor and former mayor Michael Crowe was interviewed on radio about his “grave concerns” that a house in Renmore “has been purchased for the purpose of Traveller accommodation”.
Cllr Crowe argued on the show that he did “not believe that putting Travellers into the heart of Renmore is conducive to either the occupants of the house themselves or the local community.”
Cllr Crowe went on to make claims regarding the incompatibility of Traveller culture with that of Renmore, noting explicitly that “I don’t want this. I’ll do everything I can to stop it.”
However, later in the week, Cllr Crowe moved to apologise for his remarks, noting on social media that he made “broad ranging sweeping generalisations” about Travellers, and that he was wrong.
However, there is still concern both locally and nationally over the impact of this intervention by a public representative. It is also believed too that Fianna Fail nationally wished to distance themselves from the remarks.
“It was dispiriting,” argued Dr Andrew Ó Baoill, Chair of Labour Galway-West, “to hear old arguments about incompatible cultures, in the immediate aftermath of a set of events here in Galway which celebrated Traveller culture, and marked the Traveller Community position in Irish society, as part of the decade of centenaries.”
“We, as a country and a city, have a long and shameful record of not merely failing to provide appropriate Traveller housing, but actively opposing attempts to provide accommodation to that community.
Rahoonery
“The term ‘Rahoonery’ originates in shameful protests against the housing of Traveller families by the council - at the same time that a traditional nomadic lifestyle was being actively prevented as a matter of policy,” he said.
“Over the past number of weeks, Galway has hosted a number of events, including a meeting of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Experts on Roma and Traveller Issues, and a conference, as part of the Decade of Centenaries, marking Travellers’ role in Irish life.
“At the recent conference we heard of the long struggle to secure halting sites in the city - and afterwards the organisers documented in media statements their visit to the Carrowbrowne halting site, and the unacceptable (and longstanding ) issues with the unsanitary and dangerous conditions of that site.
“It is incumbent on our public representatives to tackle bigotry and social exclusion, rather than lending their reputation and support to it,” he said.
Maxim Kelly, Secretary of Labour Galway-West, also noted his own concerns.
“We are in the midst of a housing crisis in Galway, and the Traveller Community have long been particularly hard hit, with local authorities often failing to make adequate and appropriate provision for the community.
Unspent
“It is in light of this historical exclusion, coupled with contemporary neglect, that the government - of which Cllr Crowe’s Fianna Fáil is part - allocates a separate budget for Traveller housing to local authorities.
“It is to our great shame that this budget often goes unspent, and that efforts by the executive to tackle the shortage of social housing by purchasing suitable housing, are opposed by local representatives.
“As a resident of Renmore, I am proud of the many community groups that have originated out of the efforts of local residents - from sporting organisations, to cultural groups, to our credit union. All of these groups are grounded in a spirit of inclusion and community development, and have profited from the contributions of our diverse local population, in Renmore and across our city.
“Galway is one of the most diverse cities in Ireland,” he said.
“I want Renmore to be part of our inclusive and vibrant future, and not become a footnote in the history of exclusion and anti-Traveller bigotry.
”During his interview on Galway Bay FM, Cllr Crowe was reminded by the presenter of a recent case where another house bought by the council, to house a Traveller family, burned down prior to the family taking up residency.
Cllr Crowe’s response was to claim that ‘I don’t want the same result.’
“None of us want to see council property destroyed,” agreed Dr Ó Baoill. “Cllr Crowe’s argument that housing non-Travellers in the house in Renmore will in some way avert a similar outcome implicitly accepts that the previous destruction of the house in the Carnmore area may be linked to the proposed accommodation of Travellers (a concern I share ).
“Worryingly, his solution is not to call for an end to anti-Traveller bigotry, or to condemn any violence targeted at the Traveller Community. Instead, he proposes that the council executive avoid housing Travellers. That is not the way to the inclusive, diverse, Ireland that I want,” said Dr O Baoill.
When questioned about the matter, Taoiseach Micheal Martin said Cllr Crowe’s remarks were unacceptable and that he would be spoken to.
“They’re not in line at all with Fianna Fáil policy, and the party will be meeting with the councillor,” Mr Martin added.
“We’ll be engaging with the councillor concerned because those remarks are completely unacceptable.
“We will take it from there. I don’t want to prejudice what outcome may transpire.
“We are taking the issue seriously, very seriously, and we will engage with the councillor.
“I’ve seen the reported comments, but obviously due process follows in this case and the party will engage with the councillor.
“There can be no tolerance for such an approach to the Traveller community. I’ve met with them recently – they are facing enormous challenges, particularly young people, young Travellers in particular in terms of securing employment, in terms of education completion.
“We need to do everything possible to support them in the challenges that they face.”
Shortly after Micheal Martin’s remarks, Cllr Crowe issued an apology for his statements.
“I would like to offer a sincere genuine apology to all members of the Travelling Community for my comments earlier this week. There is cut and thrust in politics but there is no room for the broad ranging sweeping generalisations I made about Travellers. For that, I am sorry.
“While there are difficulties in certain scenarios there is a way to deal with those and on this occasion I did not do so in a correct manner. I would also like to offer an apology to Fianna Fail for causing hurt to many of our members,” he concluded.
Prior to his apology, calls were made by the Galway Traveller Movement for Cllr Clowe to be suspended from his duties, pending a full investigation by Galway City Council and Fianna Fail. GTM said that the broad-sweeping comments by Cllr Crowe incited hatred, caused huge hurt and set the Traveller community back decades in its battle for equality.
