Madam, - Congratulations to Carol Coulter for a very fair article on Travellers (July 10th). As a teacher in an educational centre for teenage Travellers who haven't transferred to mainstream post-primary schools, I am very aware of the complexities involved.
As the article says, the Traveller community is not homogeneous.
This is evident in relation to education, where Traveller organisations and the settled community "insist" that all Traveller children are the same, all should attend mainstream schools and Traveller-only education centres "must" be closed.
The one size fits all approach is too inflexible to incorporate the different needs and wishes of the community.
As a result, Traveller education, despite much money and effort, has not produced the outcomes intended.
The issues of accommodation are even more complex.
While much needs to be done in relation to providing halting sites, housing etc., the issue of feuding is often involved in families refusing available accommodation and choosing the side of the road instead.
Feuding is often involved as well where serviced halting sites are damaged and become unusable.
Intimidation is also common where more vulnerable families are forced out of a serviced site because a "stronger" family wants the space.
Women are very vulnerable within the community and are often in need of refuge accommodation.
The closed, homogeneous perception of the community allows abuses to continue and provides a good excuse for non-intervention on the part of the Garda Síochána and other State agencies.
Because so many newspaper articles of a hateful nature have been and continue to be written about Travellers, there is hardly any space in which to be fair and well-meaning.
However, we must find the space and open up a more honest and comprehensive debate. There are many Travellers who are suffering severe discrimination both from within their own community and from the settled community. Who is speaking for them? - Yours, etc.,
NOREEN O'DONOHUE, Tritonville Road, Dublin 4.