Gypsies and British parliamentary language: An analysis

Turner, Royce

doi:https://doi.org/10.3828/rs.2002.1

Turner, Royce

Romani Studies (2002), 12, (1), 1–34.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3828/rs.2002.1
Language: English
Pages: 34

Abstract

This article examines how Gypsies and Travellers have been portrayed and discussed in debates and petitions in the British House of Commons—the more important of the two Houses of Parliament—between the 1988–89 and 2001. It finds persistent themes of criticism and vilification, applied in blanket fashion, condemning just about all Gypsies and Travellers as dishonest, criminal, dirty. Gypsies are rarely discussed within the House but, when they are, they are almost always portrayed in a negative light. Labour, Conservative and Ulster Unionist have all categorised Gypsies and Travellers this way. Quotations are extracted from debates and the stereotypical images that emerge have been sorted and examined. Throughout history, the image of the Gypsy has been dichotomised between the romantic, mysterious figure imbued with psychic power, on the one hand, and the thieving, scavenging, dirty brigand, on the other. In Parliament, both images have been present, with the former being portrayed as the 'real' Gypsy and the latter the 'fake'. The very distinction between 'real' and 'fake' is challenged but, in any case, it is the latter that has been far more prominent in British Parliamentary debate.

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