Traveller groups and campaigners gathered in front of Leinster House on Tuesday to raise awareness of the mental health crisis facing members of the Travelling community.
Addressing the crowd, Hugh Friel of the Donegal Travellers Group said “Travellers are dying every day by suicide” and that mental health issues had been exacerbated during the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr Friel added that the Government expected Traveller organisations to be a “one-stop shop” for all the Travelling community’s needs, which needed to end.
Traveller George Casey, who is originally from Limerick, told the PA news agency that he lost his 16-year-old sister to suicide, and that there are a lot of young Traveller men who struggle with their mental health.“We’re not here for violence, we’re not here to cause trouble.“I would like somebody to be able to come out to a Traveller site and talk to Traveller families about their mental health,” he said.
Mental health worker at Exchange House, John Paul Collins, told the PA news agency that someone in government needs to be held accountable for a lack of progress on mental health services for the Travelling community.
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