Quote Originally Posted by SadieKate View Post
And what is not judgmental about a blanket statement of distaste for an entire ethnic/cultural group, the gypsies?
Whether you agree with snap's statement or not, martin's statement is pejorative about ALL gypsies including those he/she has not seen or met, and therefore condemns all in her/his eyes. Snap's comment, and the other posters' I might add, were only about specific people based on their perceptions of those individuals from photos, people who are dressed for a wedding in a western culture for a wedding at a western church. Sorry, but martin's statement is downright nasty criticizing an entire culture based on their heritage, not on their individual merits.
I'm very disappointed that you people don't seem to get the discriminatory nature of his/her remark.
I think there are judgemental elements in BOTH statements.
I was responding to one point that I felt was interesting.
For any of us to claim we are not being judgemental is naive. We are all judgemental to some extent or another. We all have prejudices. As humans, we each naturally judge others based on our own learned perceptions, experiences, and learned values. What we do with those judgements/prejudices is something else again.

I have my own perceptions of 'gypsies'/'travelers' based on my personal upbringing and learned information (whether false or true). I happen to think those dresses are trashy looking, but I also realize that their culture is very different from mine and that they likely feel their dresses are classy and attractive. So what? Everyone's different. You won't find anything in this world that everyone approves of.
I'm not disappointed in 'you people' concerning the discussion here- I think it's fascinating and makes us all really think about how we see others. That's healthy.