Posters have been erected around town advertising a ‘March to the Arch’ on Saturday, March 21, at 1.30pm from Galway Cathedral to Spanish Arch.
This is the fourth annual protest as part of the ‘Let us Inn’ campaign to tackle alleged discrimination in the hospitality sector in Galway city. Sources in the sector say there is particular unease at this weekend’s protest, with concerns raised in private WhatsApp groups of publicans in the city centre.
A spokesman for Galway Communities Against Racism and Discrimination, one of the event organisers with the Galway Traveller Movement, said the march was “not antagonistic, and should be a fun, family day for various diverse groups to come out in what is forecast to be a sunny Saturday, which is also coincides with this year’s International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.”
Speaking to the Advertiser on Wednesday, organisers had not yet filed a notification of a march with An Garda Síochána, but said it was in the pipeline.
A senior city Garda officer confirmed no notification had been submitted: “But we had seen the posters. A policing plan is in place, and no disruption is anticipated.”
Galway has the highest number of Travellers in Ireland, with the most recent census showing 1,800 living in the city, and 2,500 in County Galway, with centuries of tradition and history here for an ethnic minority which gained legal protection in 2017.
A small number of Travellers in Galway have hit the headiness in recent years in relation to a long-running, violent feud involving three families in Galway, exacerbated by social media postings. Community representatives say violence is not part of Traveller culture, and tears families apart.
Travellers report an attitude encountered in some pubs and hotels in Galway, which find ways to refuse bookings if a party is known to include Travellers. Some publicans argue that large family groups can create anti-social atmosphere for staff and customers, and they fear being threatened with discrimination lawsuits if service is refused.
Marchers are invited to meet in the Cathedral carpark at 1.30pm, this Saturday, March 21, for hot drinks, snacks, speeches and music from PJ Mongan.
This article was amended to replace a mistaken reference to 'Sunday' with Saturday in our print edition. The event takes place on Saturday, March 21, at 1.30pm, from Galway city's Cathedral of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven & St Nicholas, on Nuns Island.
