If we want to reduce racism, we must stop thinking of people as Black & White, & instead think of the barriers groups face.
The recent dismissal of #WhiteLivesMatter examples this perfectly, as does the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter ; as both ignore what's really going on. 1)

There is one group in the UK, which faces more discrimination and inequality than any other group in the UK and they are White. They are classified as Gypsy or Irish Traveller. For the sake of this thread, I will use Gypsy/Traveller.
Firstly, let's look at population. 2)

The statistics show that there are just over 50,000 Gypsy/Travellers in the UK but it's acknowledged that this figure, especially when adding in Roma people, is probably closer to 500,000. Under representation becomes a common theme in this thread. 3)

Under representation is problematic as it makes solutions more difficult to source & implement.

In education, where data is strong, many Gypsy/Traveller children leave school after finishing primary school (age 10-11) but are already behind when they start it (4-5 years old). 4)

When Gypsy/Traveller children get to Key Stage 1 (5-7 years), attainment doesn't improve and where every other ethnicity starts above 64%, they start at 26% and 30% respectively. 5)

Further Key Stage 1 statistics also make for grim reading, where Gypsy/Traveller children fall well below any other ethnicity in science, phonics and maths. In fact, they have almost half the achievement levels of other ethnicities. 6)

By the time these children get to Key Stage 2 (7-11 years old), attainment has decreased. Lower school attendance & higher exclusion is one reason but despite efforts of councils, who have Gypsy/Traveller policies but perhaps lack engagement, failure is not abated. 7)

On school exclusions; some people believe that racism plays a major part in exclusions but I don't remember a media/campaign drive to ensure the most excluded children, our Gypsy/Traveller children, remain in school. Yet they have by far the highest absence & exclusion rates. 8)

Back to education. Overall, by the time Gypsy/Traveller children leave education, their attainment in grammar, punctuation and spelling is close to a third that of Indian & Chinese children, & half that of Black Caribbean. 9)

You would think that as some Gypsy/Traveller children have been removed from education (often by choice), things would improve. Not a chance. If fact in Progress 8 (the difference between Primary & Secondary school) & GCSE's (16 years old), attainment reduces once again. 10)

This graph, taken from the Census 2011 analysis shows how few Gypsy/Travellers leave with recognised qualifications. 11)

What's most troubling is that it's NOT because these children are any less capable, it's because so few make it to A-Levels!
We know this because when we look at the percentage getting at least x3 A's at A-Level (16-18 years old), the best performers are Gypsy/Travellers! 12)

But it's not just in education where Gypsy/Travellers are let down.
When turning to health, we see lower success rates of booking dental appointments, lower positive GP experiences. lowest quality of life reports for over 65's & the worst reported health. 13)

In employment (2011 Census), Gypsy/Travellers come out worst again, with lowest economic activity (employment), high levels of unemployment and considerable employment in elementary (low skilled) roles and skilled trades, such as construction. 14)

The reason I ended up using 2011 Census results on employment is because there is such little data on Gypsy/Travellers. Quite often, I would come across withheld data (exampled below). I understand why this may happen but why should we not do more to get the data? 15)

Withheld data also came up for confidence in local police, home ownership, time living in current home, social renting & overcrowded housing, to name a few. And no stats for internet use, conviction rate, pensioner income, visits to galleries; basically, most things. 16)

Gypsy/Traveller stats are often amalgamated into White, which begs the question, how can we fix problems we don't know exist?
Is this structural failure? Or racism?
Due to lower populations, it's probably structural failure but what isn't structural are the next few tweets. 17)

These signs existed in the last decade, or exist today. This post by @travellerboxers highlights others.
Many define racism as against skin colour but would it be acceptable for a shop to say, no Caribbeans? Or, no Pakistanis? Or would there be uproar? 18)
https://twitter.com/travellerboxers/status/1269240861130457090?s=20

Why the silence? Why are we so passive? It's racism. And not just that, it's accepted racism, as @Tyson_Fury points out.
Imo, it's because Gypsy/Travellers are predominantly White & #WhiteLivesMatter, only when we talk about ethnicity, which we don't! 19)

This point is underlined in the above stats & piece I wrote about how racial inequality has reduced in the last decade.
After Gypsy; Black Caribbean, Pakistani & Bangladeshi's suffer the worst racial inequality, so why aren't they at the front of #BlackLivesMatter debates? 20)

I suspect it's for a number of reasons, which involve who the organisers are, how the movement began (police violence against Black people) & where in the UK #BLM is run (London, where 60% of the Black population lives). But also because the focus is on Black, not BAME. 21)

In some ways this is good because a focus on BAME is typically BAME vs White, which is why many don't realise that the most deprived, discriminated ethnicity in England, is White.
But it's also failed because the BLM removes a focus from the ethnicity inequality debate. 22)

Imo, this is why # #BlackLivesMatterUK must do a better job representing non-Black people (eg-Pakistani/Bangladeshi).

That's not a criticism of #BLM but an appreciation of inequality nuances within communities, structures & solutions. Solutions come after identifying issues. 23)

For example, I wrote this piece on housing, which identifies why (especially for the Black community) it's so important to invest in London's social/council homes.
Imo, this type environmental inequality is where #BlackLivesMatter needs to focus. 24) https://www.politicshome.com/members/article/to-reduce-racial-inequality-we-need-a-housing-market-that-works-for-all

And this environmental & structural inequality is certainly faced by the Gypsy/Travellers, who not only see their plight underappreciated but under-reported. How can any community change their outcomes if they suffer this level of disenfranchisement? 25)
https://travellermovement.org.uk/news-news/50-the-last-acceptable-form-of-racism

I'll add to the thread when I can & I know this may be seen as a sensitive time to be posting but we must change the shape of debate & identify failures, successes & solutions.
For those who are interested, this is my 'Great decade for equality' piece.
https://longerthought.blogspot.com/2020/06/a-great-decade-for-equality.html

I just received this tweet about #racism toward #Gypsy's & I think it makes my point, perfectly. We need to think more deeply about how racism exists & why, or we won't be able to ensure we close it down & reduce racial inequality. It's a complex topic, requiring much debate.