I've just got back from the East Anglian Social Forum. A lot was discussed there, and some positive action has come from it. One issue that came up was the eviction of traveller communities from their caravan sites, and public racism towards them. So I'm teaming up with an activist from Ipswich and a reporter from Indymedia to film a documentary to raise awareness about the racism directed towards travellers, in the hope that we can enlighten some people who buy into the tabloid press and victimise communities that they don't understand. We've got some contacts, and we're going to travel round East Anglia the weekend after next doing interviews. We're also hoping to make it into a bit of an artistic production, and I should be reading my new poem on it. I'm quite excited about this, I think we can really make a bit of a difference in some local circles in raising awareness. If anyone has any contacts with traveller communities in the east of England, or has any information or statistics or messages that they'd like me to get across, please let me know, and I'll try to include it. When it's finished, the documentary should be available on Indymedia, possibly on Schnews, and will be shown in public screenings. If successful, we may even be able to get it onto some local TV stations, and some local press attention....
feel free to email me if you want. i dont have many links but i'd probably be able to portray a more positive side of the life that people living in caravans tend to lead if you're interested. got a few mates on the road who probably wouldn't mind being filmed aswell. peace and love stardust xxx
Nice one mate, tis a very worthwhile thing your doing as it seems to me the only people who are passionate about this issue are the travellers themselves and maybe a couple of 'crusties' here and there, will be good if you can reach a wider audience and let them know the truth about travellers... Ill be V impressed if you manage to get this documentary even mentioned on the Schnews newsletter !!....
Why, do you think Schnews would not be interested? Traditionally, CJA, and evictions are exactly the things they've been looking at. It's a professional affair, and we've got Indymedia on board.... PS. We're not looking at New-Age travellers, we're looking at Roma communities....
Ahh i didnt mean it like that Sal... what i meant was that Schnews is a very big platform to use to get things noticed on, especially concerning this particular issue like you say... I think you deserve a lot of credit for trying to get this issue out there and if it gets on Schnews then fair play to you
Cheers man, fingers crossed. I've emailed them, hope to hear from them soon. Fingers crossed. In other news, Forward Wales, wants to publish one of my poems. Woooohooooo!
