A KEY figure in the UK’s Gypsy community is touring schools in a bid to break down barriers and stem what he describes as a growing tide of racism.

Darlington man Billy Welch – often dubbed ‘King of the Gypsies’ – has been praised by police for helping to build bridges between communities by embarking upon a mission to share the history of his people with thousands of children.

Speaking to The Northern Echo, Mr Welch and his wife, Rachel, highlighted the devastating impact of prejudice on their community as they outlined their hopes for a future defined by understanding, not hate.

Sharing stories of their family members being racially abused, bullied out of jobs, persecuted at school and turned away from businesses "just for being Gypsies", they claimed that the last acceptable form of racism is that which is directed toward their people.

The Welch family can be traced back through Darlington’s history for hundreds of years yet generations of Gypsies living and working in the town can do nothing to stop people telling them to “get back to where they came from”, said Mr Welch.

He believes myths, misconceptions, the media, prejudice and Brexit are factors that contribute to the on-going persecution of their community.

In a bid to combat the issues, he is now devoting his efforts to visiting schools across the North-East, hoping to “build bridges” and improve the much-maligned reputation of his people through greater understanding of their traditions and culture.

He said: “People are shocked when they hear historic stories of racism towards black people in America.

“Yet is still happening to us, under your nose – in the 21st Century we are being refused service, persecuted and all tarred with the same brush, if one of our people does something bad, we are all blamed.

“There are thousands and thousands of Gypsies just in Darlington and you will never hear of the vast majority of them – we are quiet and private, we pay taxes and just want to look after our families like anyone else.

“The racism we face is having a huge, detrimental effect on our community – we’ve experienced discrimination for 500 years and it’s still happening.

“I think most of it comes from misunderstanding and fear, rather than just prejudice, so I’m going into the schools in the hope that children will grow up to understand us – we have to start with the children.”

Police have welcomed Mr Welch’s efforts to improve relations between the settled community and Gypsies.

Darlington’s Neighbourhood Inspector, Chris Knox said: “It is fair to say that the travelling community in Darlington has a bad name but that is down to a small minority of people.

“The majority of the community are law-abiding citizens and we welcome any attempts to work with the wider community and build up links.

“In particular, Billy Welch works very well with the authorities in Darlington and it is worth saying that the work he does actually breaks down barriers between the wider community and the Gypsies in Darlington.”

Mr Welch will visit Darlington’s Beaumont Hill Academy as part of its Diversity Day today.

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