Monthly Archives: December 2017
Last 2017 French Chronicle …
Not much news over the Christmas week in France. When there are other news, the 15 to 20 thousand Roma living in camps do not take much space in the press.
Christmas celebration with Roma in Nantes, near their camp; in Angers, portraits of forgotten Roma who were expulsed a while back in November; near Paris, social housing is being opened for a few families; and finally in the North, a caravan burnt down in a camp near Lilles.
– Nantes. Un Noël précaire pour les enfants roms du quai Wilson. In: Ouest France. 26.12.2017. https://www.ouest-france.fr/pays-de-la-loire/nantes-44000/nantes-un-noel-precaire-pour-les-enfants-roms-du-quai-wilson-5472023
– Ce jour de novembre, au campement des oubliés. In: Ouest France. 29.12.2017. https://www.ouest-france.fr/pays-de-la-loire/maine-et-loire/ce-jour-de-novembre-au-campement-des-oublies-5477808
– Marne-et-Gondoire ► Des logements pour les Roms au pôle solidaire et une aire d’accueil pour les gens du voyage. In: MagJournal. 26.12.2017. http://www.magjournal77.fr/marne-et-gondoire-des-logements-pour-les-roms-au-pole-solidaire-et-une-aire-daccueil-pour-les-gens-du-voyage/
– Une caravane prend feu dans un camp de familles roms, pas de blesse. In: La Voix du Nord. 29.12.2017. http://www.lavoixdunord.fr/288444/article/2017-12-29/une-caravane-prend-feu-dans-un-camp-de-familles-roms-pas-de-blesse
One Rotten Apple
Yet another illustration that one rotten apple is sufficient to drag us all down into stereotypes. This is the ongoing case of the Mafia in Ostia, the former Rome port on the Tiber, a Mafia where one of the main gang and bosses are Sinti.
– Ostia, sigilli alla sala slot feudo del clan Spada. In: Roma Republica. 27.12.2017. http://roma.repubblica.it/cronaca/2017/12/27/news/ostia_sigilli_alla_sala_slot_feudo_del_clan_spada-185321351/
Saul Friedlander
The writer and Hamburg native Saul Friendlander is interviewed in the context of the inauguration on the 27th of December of a monument on the site of the Hannover railway station. From this place, more than 8’000 Jews, Roma, Sinti and others were sent to their death. Saul Friedlander survived.
He is afraid of the increased denial of the Holocaust. So are we.
– “Meine Heimat ist meine Geschichte”. In: Der Spiegel. 27.12.2017. http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/historiker-saul-friedlaender-a-1147717.html
Schools in UK …
A long article on the discriminations faced by Roma and Travellers’ children in UK schools, with a disproportionally large number of them being expelled.
– Why are Gypsy children often expelled from UK schools? In: Al Jazeera. 30.12.2017. http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2017/12/gypsy-children-expelled-uk-schools-171229075235572.html
Opinion
No comments here …
– A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO ANTIGYPSYISM. In: The Norwich Radical. 29.12.2017. https://thenorwichradical.com/2017/12/29/a-beginners-guide-to-antigypsyism/
Hungary: A bit too Easy
Tibor Ágoston, a Jobbik representative in the city of Debrecen in Eastern Hungary, voted against the local government scholarship for a young Rom. In his speech, he said he would support real talent in Debrecen, but not a “catch all” program.
Jobbik initiated an investigation into the case.
It turns out that Tibor Ágoston was sentenced to a HUF 750,000 (2’500 EUR) in March 2016 for holocaust denial. A nice fellow he certainly is.
He has now made a written statement resigning from all his positions and functions in Jobbik.
– Kilépett a Jobbikból a roma fiatal támogatását megvonó képviselő. In: Index. 28.12.2017. https://index.hu/belfold/2017/12/28/kilepett_a_jobbikbol_a_roma_fiataltol_a_tamogatast_megvono_kepviselo/
– Inkább kilép a Jobbikból a roma fiatalon gúnyolódó debreceni képviselő. In: HVG. 28.12.2017. http://hvg.hu/itthon/20171228_Inkabb_kilep_a_Jobbikbol_a_roma_fiatalon_gunyolodo_debreceni_kepviselo
Slow Swiss …
The Swiss are true to their reputation: Everything with ponderation, consideration, and discussion. In this case, the Swiss Federal Government set up a task force to make proposal for bettering the situation of Jenische (Swiss Travellers) Sinti and Roma. In 2014 …
In 2017, no end to the story, as the final report is still outstanding.
– Was wurde eigentlich aus dem Aktionsplan für Fahrende? In: Tages Anzeiger. 29.12.2017. https://www.tagesanzeiger.ch/schweiz/standard/was-wurde-eigentlich-aus-dem-aktionsplan-fuer-schweizer-fahrende/story/29830508
Roma and Comic Books
An interview of Vincente Rodriguez, Spanish Rom and founder of RomaPop about the representation of Roma in comic books in general.
– From DR. DOOM To NIGHTWING and SCARLET WITCH: Re-Assessing Romani Representation In Comic Books. In: Newsa Rama. 28.12.2017. https://www.newsarama.com/37968-from-dr-doom-to-nightwing-and-scarlet-witch-re-assessing-romani-representation-in-comic-books.html
Insults
An Irishman went t court and was awarded 280’000 pounds for having been insulted repeatedly as being a Gypsy.
Wonder if a Rom would have won as much?
– Irishman awarded over £280K after manager’s ‘gypo’ ‘pikey’ and ‘paddy’ jibes. In: The Irish Times. 28.12.2017. http://irishpost.co.uk/irishman-awarded-280k-managers-gypo-pikey-paddy-jibes/
Hate Crime
In Scotland, a young traveller girl was assaulted and pelted with stones.
Really????????
– Young girl pelted with stones in shocking anti-gypsy hate crime. In: Daily Record. 29.12.2017. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/young-woman-pelted-stones-being-11763914
Slovenia: New Community Law
The Ombudsman, Vlasta Nussdorfer, sharply criticized the planned revision of the law on the Roma community. The law will not bring water and electricity to Roma, but will continue to violate human rights, she concluded. Roma organizations are also concerned with the attempt to distinguish between Roma and “autochthonous” people.
– Varuhinja: Če Romom odrekamo vodo in elektriko, se v naseljih razrašča criminal. In: Dnevnik. https://www.dnevnik.si/1042795985/slovenija/varuhinja-ce-romom-odrekamo-vodo-in-elektriko-se-v-naseljih-razrasca-kriminal
Hungary – Fig leaf
In the framework of a program called a “Home in Tanoda – a chance for the Roma children in the suburbs of Szeged”, a total of forty students of the Kiskundorozsma and Szeged Roma classrooms were allowed to play in the Szeged Teke and Bowling Centres. From small to big, from the age of four to adolescents, all of them could try it on the alleys.
Nice, but does it really help?
– Tekézni vitte a kiskundorozsmai gyerekeket a Szegedi Roma Tanoda. In: NLCafe. 27.12.2017. https://www.nlcafe.hu/foto/20171227/tekezni-vitte-a-kiskundorozsmai-gyerekeket-a-szegedi-roma-tanoda/
Slovenia: Green Jobs
A conference on green jobs for Roma took place at the Slovenian Tourist Complex of Jezero. The conference was organized by the Union for the Development of the Roma minority Preporod in cooperation with the Office for Nationalities of the Republic of Slovenia and the People’s University of Kočevje. Its purpose was to present examples of best practices to Roma and the wider local community to show that Roma themselves can find work.
There were few Roma participants to the conference, something that the Secretary General of the Association Preporod, said was a reflection of the current situation in Kočevje in the field of Roma issues.
– DL: Zelena delovna mesta za Rome – Romi si lahko sami najdejo delo. In: Lokalno. 26.12.2017. http://www.lokalno.si/2017/12/26/188103/aktualno/DL_Zelena_delovna_mesta_za_Rome___Romi_si_lahko_sami_najdejo_delo/
Kiev: Integration Help
Activists are helping Roma to integrated. Always to be taken with a grain of salt, as Human Rights are not necessarily the best angle for integration. Education of the overall population and generally education are key.
But good an necessary job in any case!
– Human rights activist from Kharkiv helps Roma community to integrate. In: Kyiv Post. 25.12.2017. https://www.kyivpost.com/lifestyle/people/journalism-of-tolerance/human-rights-activist-kharkiv-helps-roma-community-integrate.html
Australian Beer …
Well, it seems that Australia is somewhat indebted to Roma … The inventor of Australian beer was an English petty Roma thief deported to the colonies.
– The man who invented Australian beer was a British petty thief. In: The Daily Telegraph. 24.12.2017. https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/the-man-who-invented-australian-beer-was-a-british-petty-thief/news-story/599db1e8dfb78757786a14661044585a
Baxtalo Krečuno!
Baxtalo Krečuno!
A View from a Sintica
What does it mean to grow up in Germany as a Sintica… And what stereotypes one is exposed to.
– masala 11 – „Ich habe gedacht, du wohnst im Wohnwagen“ In: Masala Magazin. 17.12.2017. https://masalamagazin.wordpress.com/2017/12/16/masala-11-ich-habe-gedacht-du-wohnst-im-wohnwagen/
A View from a Sintica
What does it mean to grow up in Germany as a Sintica… And what stereotypes one is exposed to.
– masala 11 – „Ich habe gedacht, du wohnst im Wohnwagen“ In: Masala Magazin. 17.12.2017. https://masalamagazin.wordpress.com/2017/12/16/masala-11-ich-habe-gedacht-du-wohnst-im-wohnwagen/
Sofia: No carriages
Another article on the new interdiction of horse drawn carriages in the centre of Sofia. This deprives many Roma of their only source of income.
Bad.
– Les charrettes ne sont plus le dada de Sofia qui accueille l’UE. In: Swiss Info. 22.12.2017. https://www.swissinfo.ch/fre/les-charrettes-ne-sont-plus-le-dada-de-sofia-qui-accueille-l-ue/43776542
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