No place for ‘leave or die’ graffiti threat to Travellers
A TRAVELLER has said his children were “in tears” after waking up and discovering his van had been graffitied with the words ‘Gypsy scum’ and ‘leave or die’.
Edward Delaney, who owns land off Boundary Road in Rowledge, near Farnham, said it was “horrible” and “disturbing” to read the discriminatory comments. However, he claims this is not the first time he and his family have been subjected to racist or abusive remarks.
He said: “I thought it was a nice neighbourhood here for my kids, but they were in tears when they saw it. They were distraught, it was heartbreaking.
“It was just horrible to read. We never thought we’d receive death threats in this day and age, in 2021.
“It’s really shocking to see what people are capable of.”
Mr Delaney said some of his neighbours stopped by to give his wife flowers after the incident, offering their support, but this kindness has not been extended by others.
He said he moved to the area in August and submitted a planning application to turn the land into two Traveller pitches, but a decision is yet to be made.
He is hoping the application is successful so he has “the chance to give his children an education”.
However, he said some of the comments on the planning portal are “really upsetting” to read.
There are currently more than 50 objection letters to his application, most of which have been submitted online anonymously.
One Farnham resident wrote: “I am fearful for the many elderly residents of this area”.
While a Rowledge resident said she is “wary due to the reputation of such a community in the area”, adding the generalisation: “Their honesty can be questionable”.
Another objection letter claimed some locals felt threatened by Travellers moving in.
However, a woman who wrote in support of the application said she feels the objections are “nothing but racist” and the council “should not be swayed by others’ malintent”.
Mr Delaney, 31, said: “I am a hard-working person with three kids and one on the way. I have never been involved in any crime or had any problems with anyone.
“It’s really disturbing. I never thought in my whole life that neighbours, in such a well-thought-of area, would treat a fellow English resident so badly.”
Mr Delaney added most of the graffiti has now been removed, but his vehicle needs to be repainted. A common racial slur against Travellers was also used alongside the other messages on the van.
Surrey Gypsy Traveller Communities Forum (SGTCF) said it had not been aware of the vandalism, but it hopes the “deeply offensive” words are removed as soon as possible.
The forum was founded in 1996 to create opportunities for public agencies, charities, interested individuals and groups to talk to Traveller communities.
A spokesman for SGTCF said: “It is always upsetting to see racist comments which, apart from being deeply offensive, are against the law.
“[The racial slur] is a word that should never be used; it is as bad as the N word to a Black person. How frightened and threatened the owner of this van must have been when they found death threats sprayed on their vehicle.
“Whatever the circumstances behind this vandalism, we hope the words will be removed as soon as possible.”
Surrey Police said it was called to reports of racist language graffitied on a vehicle at an address in Farnham on the morning of Wednesday October 27.
The force is now appealing for witnesses to the “distressing incident of racist abuse”.
Inspector Sam Adcock, borough commander for Waverley, said: “We take all reports of hate crime extremely seriously and we will seek to bring offenders to justice in each case.
“This was a particularly distressing incident of racist abuse which will not be tolerated.
“If you or someone you know is a victim of a hate crime, please do not suffer in silence, report it to us or via third-party True Vision.”
Officers are investigating the incident and would like to urge anyone with any information to come forward, quoting reference number PR/45210113466.
For more information on how to report hate crime and details of the support available for victims, visit Surrey Police’s website.