'The police embarrassed and humiliated us. It should never be allowed to happen again'
Billy Welch is head Gypsy. Two of his grandchildren and around 20 of his nieces and nephews were caught up in the trouble in Manchester city centre in November that saw police allegedly force dozens of Traveller children onto trains and prevent them from visiting the Christmas Markets. Here he explains the impact it had on his family and his community and what he would like to see happen now.
"Children as young as seven were forced onto trains going in different directions. Mothers were seperated from their little ones.
They didn't know where they were going. These were girls and boys dressed up in their best clothes to go to the Christmas markets.
I know of one little boy who ended up in Newcastle. Another ended up in Grimsby. This happened in 21st Century Britain.
Not one of those children commmitted a crime. It isn't a crime to be a Gypsy, it isn't a crime to be a Traveller. The problem is that Greater Manchester Police seem to think it is.
You wouldn't have seen this aimed at the Sikh community, you wouldn't see it aimed the Muslim community and you wouldn't see it aimed at the settled community.
The police wouldn't have done it to those children. But they did it to Gypsy children because discriminating against Gypsies is the last acceptable form of racism.
What they did embarassed and humiliated us, not just the children involved but all of us. I'm getting on now, but I have never in all my years seen anything like this. It has frightened a lot of people.
The police had a duty of care towards those children and they let them down badly. We have been working very hard over the last 25-30 years to improve relationships with the police and things were getting better. This has set us back decades.
Gypsies and travellers are being used as a scapegoat for the country's problems. We want Greater Manchester Police to acknowledge what they did, apologise and accept responsibility.
We want them to recognise it was wrong and to make sure it never happens again."
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