A TRAVELLER has hit back at criticism over people in her community marrying their first cousins, stating that she doesn’t think that there is anything wrong with it.
Zoey recently made a TikTok video, in which she said that she thinks smoking is “disgusting”.
In response to this, an online troll said: “You say that smoking is disgusting but [travellers] marry your own cousins.”
In the UK it is legal to marry your first cousin, but, the practice is frowned upon in many circles.
However, it is common practice amongst the traveller and gypsy community.
Children who are the product of first cousin marriage have a 5% risk of genetic defects, compared with 2% of children who’s parents are not related.
Defending the practice, Zoey took to TikTok to say: “Yes, some girls do marry their cousins, and what about it?”
She said that she doesn’t understand why non-travellers complain about gypsies marrying their cousins.
“Why are you letting it get to you?”, she said.
“So what, let them be.
“As long as they are happy, that’s the main thing”.
Zoey said that she doesn’t think there is anything wrong with the practice, and urged non-travellers to keep their opinions to themselves.
“We don’t care”, she said.
Zoey’s video, which was posted under the username @zoey_pon, has gone viral, racking up 214,000 views on the video sharing platform.
TikTok users raced to the video’s comments section to share their thoughts, and opinions were divided.
One person said: “You’re right girl, you do you.
ACROSS the globe, more than 10 percent of marriages are between first or second cousins.
In the UK, there’s no legal bar to two cousins having a relationship.
That means that if end up falling for the children of your aunts and uncles, there’s nothing stopping you from eventually tying the knot.
If you’re over the age of 18, you can do this without the consent of your legal guardian or parent.
First-cousin marriages were once quite common in Europe, especially among the elite.
“People spend too much time in other people’s business.”
A second person said: “What about the defects the kids will have?
“They will literally suffer for the rest of their life?”
A third person said: “I understand it’s your culture but It’s just not right it’s inbred.
“The kids can have many defects at birth because of this.”
A fourth person, a fellow traveller, added: “Some country people marry their cousins too.
“I don’t understand why people hate on us when they the same”.
