• Contact us
  • About us
  • Digital edition
  • Online archive
Sunday, June 29, 2025
Cumberland and Westmorland Herald
  • News
    Illegal vapes seized from Eden shop

    Illegal vapes seized from Eden shop

    Partnership vs company: Choosing the right structure for your farming business

    Partnership vs company: Choosing the right structure for your farming business

    Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner

    Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner

    Expansion of smell complaints scheme

    Expansion of smell complaints scheme

    Terminal hillness: Cumbrian man with incurable cancer pays homage to the Lake District

    Terminal hillness: Cumbrian man with incurable cancer pays homage to the Lake District

    Ex-soldier cleared of causing two men’s death in M6 crash

    Ex-soldier cleared of causing two men’s death in M6 crash

    Plans for 100-caravan holiday park revealed

    Plans for 100-caravan holiday park revealed

    Award for Eden police officer who goes the extra mile

    Award for Eden police officer who goes the extra mile

    Concerns over public toilets in Kirkby Stephen

    Concerns over public toilets in Kirkby Stephen

  • Sport
    £100,000 target for new changing rooms extension

    £100,000 target for new changing rooms extension

    Medal success for Upper Eden tug-of-war team

    Medal success for Upper Eden tug-of-war team

    Eden man competes in Hyrox World Games

    Eden man competes in Hyrox World Games

    Double national triumph for Stuart Robinson

    Double national triumph for Stuart Robinson

    Patterdale’s Eden Eagles make history

    Patterdale’s Eden Eagles make history

    Penrith teen crowned British vault champion

    Penrith teen crowned British vault champion

    Penrith gymnasts represent North of England in finals

    Penrith gymnasts represent North of England in finals

    New boss revealed for Penrith AFC

    New boss revealed for Penrith AFC

    Penrith Panthers celebrate winning season

    Penrith Panthers celebrate winning season

  • Obituaries
  • Nostalgia
  • Online archive
  • Buy Photos
  • Buy your paper
  • North Lakes Living
No Result
View All Result
Cumberland and Westmorland Herald
  • News
    Illegal vapes seized from Eden shop

    Illegal vapes seized from Eden shop

    Partnership vs company: Choosing the right structure for your farming business

    Partnership vs company: Choosing the right structure for your farming business

    Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner

    Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner

    Expansion of smell complaints scheme

    Expansion of smell complaints scheme

    Terminal hillness: Cumbrian man with incurable cancer pays homage to the Lake District

    Terminal hillness: Cumbrian man with incurable cancer pays homage to the Lake District

    Ex-soldier cleared of causing two men’s death in M6 crash

    Ex-soldier cleared of causing two men’s death in M6 crash

    Plans for 100-caravan holiday park revealed

    Plans for 100-caravan holiday park revealed

    Award for Eden police officer who goes the extra mile

    Award for Eden police officer who goes the extra mile

    Concerns over public toilets in Kirkby Stephen

    Concerns over public toilets in Kirkby Stephen

  • Sport
    £100,000 target for new changing rooms extension

    £100,000 target for new changing rooms extension

    Medal success for Upper Eden tug-of-war team

    Medal success for Upper Eden tug-of-war team

    Eden man competes in Hyrox World Games

    Eden man competes in Hyrox World Games

    Double national triumph for Stuart Robinson

    Double national triumph for Stuart Robinson

    Patterdale’s Eden Eagles make history

    Patterdale’s Eden Eagles make history

    Penrith teen crowned British vault champion

    Penrith teen crowned British vault champion

    Penrith gymnasts represent North of England in finals

    Penrith gymnasts represent North of England in finals

    New boss revealed for Penrith AFC

    New boss revealed for Penrith AFC

    Penrith Panthers celebrate winning season

    Penrith Panthers celebrate winning season

  • Obituaries
  • Nostalgia
  • Online archive
  • Buy Photos
  • Buy your paper
  • North Lakes Living
No Result
View All Result
Cumberland and Westmorland Herald
No Result
View All Result
Home Latest

Appleby Horse Fair: Rules increase threatens Traveller community

Kelsey Monteith, who visited the event this year, fears the Traveller way of life is at risk of being eroded by casual racism and a lack of connection

by CWH
21 August 2021
in Latest, News
A A
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
Kelsey Monteith
Kelsey Monteith

I am not a Traveller. I don’t have the blood, or the name, but I have been fortunate enough to experience fragments of the rich Romani culture.

But this culture, identity and way of life is being subtly eroded through tightening regulations, controls and through the normalised racism experienced by the Traveller community.

The 2021 Appleby Horse Fair is one prime example.

To the thousands of Travellers that flock to Appleby every year, the fair is more than a simple gathering of people.

It is the bedrock of Traveller culture and identity, having been compared to the annual Islamic pilgrimage to the sacred city of Mecca.

It offers a chance for the community to gather with friends and family, settle disputes and to make deals to earn a living – all essential aspects of the Traveller identity and way of life.

However, traditions associated with the fair, and the continuation of a Traveller identity and sense of self are being threatened by increasing restrictions and regulations whose true impacts are often concealed.

In the few years that I have been going to the fair, each year the posts erected by the police creep further and further up the roadsides, with travellers only able to stop in temporary stopping places organised in advance.

‘Designated sites undermines Traveller community’

But the very creation of designated sites undermines the nomadic nature of the Traveller community, and fails to recognise the sporadic needs of horses.

Those who arrive later may find themselves with limited or even no grass available on which to graze their animals, and if they fail to stay on these areas then they face being criminalised and evicted.

Traditional stopping places have also been closed off, and in 2021 a usual stopping place was sprayed with cow manure, which caused clashes between local residents and Travellers.

This can force Travellers to stop in dangerous locations, such as close to main roads where not only risk their own safety, and that of their animals, but also the chance of road accidents which threaten the wider community.

This threat to nomadic lifestyles is also being crippled by the Police, Crime and Sentencing bill which gives police the power to confiscate the wagons – the homes – of travellers who stop on unapproved sites, although the number of ‘approved’ sites is vastly dwindling.

This criminalises the very way of life of the Traveller community.

Changes have also crept into towns such as Kirkby Lonsdale – where horses were traditionally driven into the town so that Travellers could meet, socialise and make deals in pubs or grab a bite to eat.

Appleby Horse Fair
Picture: Kelsey Monteith

But now if you pass through, the railings are covered in boards – whose true intent to deny Travellers the ability to stop in the town has been concealed with children’s paintings.

This façade of welcome and sense of community contrasts the subvert denial of the Traveller community to express their culture and identity and justifies the exclusion of Travellers from the town.

For centuries, the Traveller community has, and continues to be, the victims of casual racism which is barely recognised, and even less frequently challenged.

Locals likening Travellers to ‘uncivilised invaders’ who ‘overrun’ their town construct a stereotype of Travellers as violent and dirty.

But it doesn’t stop there. The community is also subject to more overt forms of racism, such as being denied access to pubs or restaurants on the basis of their identity.

‘if it was any other ethnic minority there would be an outcry’

I myself have experienced this first-hand when we walked into a pub in the hope of a drink and some warm food, but were bluntly informed “locals only”, even after the barman had started to prepare the first drink.

If this was any other ethnic minority, there would be a public outcry and severe consequences, but the Traveller community has become accustomed to this abuse.

The fair also leads to heightened tensions between the police and Traveller community.

The police aim to create a safe environment, but their failure to engage with and understand the Traveller way of life contributes to the erosion of traditions and cultures associated with the fair.

Each year sees additional officers and tighter road restrictions with escalating costs – Cumbria Constabulary spent £115,000 on the 2019 fair.

Recent fairs have seen horses being prevented from driving through the town or being tethered in certain locations.

I experienced this disconnection between the police and the Traveller community when I was asked to dismount my horse and lead it through the village.

What the police failed to realise what that if I did so, it would not only be more dangerous for me, who would have to walk amongst people and horses with my own animal to care for, but would increase the risk of other people and animals getting hurt.

‘Appleby Fair isn’t perfect – but no event is’

This isn’t to say that the fair is perfect. But no gathering or event is.

Accidents are bound to happen, but when a horse falls at the grand national this is seen as normal and an unfortunate tragedy, but if a horse slips or is injured at the fair, the Traveller community is often accused of committing a horrific animal rights violation.

Litter is left, but the media fuels the creation of a ‘dirty’ stereotype by only choosing to capture the initial mess, and not the large-scale clean up operation organised by the community after the fair, and the criticism faced by the Traveller community fails to reach the same crescendo when events such as Glastonbury result in discarded tents, clothing, water bottles and countless other items.

Appleby Horse Fair
Picture: Kelsey Monteith

Fights and disputes do happen, but this can occur anywhere, and we cannot homogenise a whole society based on the actions of a few.

It is unacceptable to use phrases such as ‘all women’ in our society, so why is it acceptable to say that ‘all Travellers’ are violent troublemakers based on the actions of a small percentage of the community?

I am not trying to claim that the Traveller community is without fault, but the systematic acts of racism, and subtle acts of cultural and identity destruction against the community are unacceptable.

The diverse and rich culture of the Traveller community should be celebrated and preserved, not chipped away in the hopes that the foundations, and the community itself will crumble.

  • Fair co-ordinating group says 2021 Appleby Horse Fair was ‘challenging’ – read their view here

Related Posts

Illegal vapes seized from Eden shop
Latest

Illegal vapes seized from Eden shop

29 June 2025
Partnership vs company: Choosing the right structure for your farming business
Expert advice

Partnership vs company: Choosing the right structure for your farming business

29 June 2025
Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner
News

Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner

29 June 2025
Expansion of smell complaints scheme
News

Expansion of smell complaints scheme

27 June 2025
Terminal hillness: Cumbrian man with incurable cancer pays homage to the Lake District
News

Terminal hillness: Cumbrian man with incurable cancer pays homage to the Lake District

27 June 2025
Ex-soldier cleared of causing two men’s death in M6 crash
News

Ex-soldier cleared of causing two men’s death in M6 crash

27 June 2025
No Result
View All Result

Stay connected

Facebook Twitter Instagram

Most popular

From the Herald’s archives

From the Herald’s archives

27 June 2025
Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner

Pensioner exposed himself to Lake District runner

29 June 2025
Plans for 100-caravan holiday park revealed

Plans for 100-caravan holiday park revealed

27 June 2025
£2 million move for Cumbria’s coroners

£2 million move for Cumbria’s coroners

27 June 2025
Expansion of smell complaints scheme

Expansion of smell complaints scheme

27 June 2025
Award for Eden police officer who goes the extra mile

Award for Eden police officer who goes the extra mile

27 June 2025
Cumberland and Westmorland Herald Logo

33 Middlegate
Penrith
Cumbria
CA11 7SY

Phone: 01768 862313
Email: news@cwherald.com

Registered in England as Barrnon Media Limited. No: 12475190
VAT registration number: 343486488

Explore

  • News
  • Sport
  • Farming
  • Property
  • Obituaries
  • Nostalgia
  • Your view

Useful links

  • Contact us
  • Photosales
  • Online archive
  • Buy your paper
  • Digital edition
  • North Lakes Living
  • Advertise
  • About us

Follow us on

© Barrnon Media Limited 2025

Terms & Conditions / Privacy Policy / Cookie Policy

This website and its associated newspaper are members of the Independent Press Standards Organisation
Review Your Cart
0
Discount
Add Coupon Code
Subtotal
Total Installment Payments
Bundle Discount
Checkout

 
0
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Sport
  • Obituaries
  • Nostalgia
  • Online archive
  • more
    • North Lakes Living
    • Buy Photos
    • Buy your paper
    • About us
    • Contact us

© 2020 Cumberland & Westmorland Herald