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My husband, Charles, for example, left school at a young age. He grew up in Ireland, Holland, Germany, and all over the UK, until finally settling down in the Midlands with his immediate family. Before settling, he was the "new pikey kid" at every school he went to. He quickly learned how to fend off bullying the best way he knew: with his fists. He differentiated himself later on by taking a keen interest in art cinema and developing his own skills as a filmmaker and photographer. He's gone on to festival success with various short film projects.The thing about being a traveler, particularly for my husband, is that he's capable of "passing" in a way that members of other ethnic minorities cannot. In professional or social settings where people don't know, no one would guess that he came from a Romany background. It means that otherwise open-minded people are occasionally guilty of letting their ignorance slip out. His ethnicity is not something he ever makes a point of hiding, but the fact that it's not obvious is also undeniably and sadly useful, considering people might otherwise choose to associate him with criminality. Looking like a Gypsy means, among other things, running the risk of being regularly denied entry into shops, pubs and restaurants. It sounds like the kind of discrimination so insanely throwback that it couldn't happen any more—but it does, and routinely.TRENDING ON VICE SPORTS: Alex Morgan Hopes Her TV Show Changes Attitudes About Women Athletes
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