30.04.2014 Civil courage against discrimination in Serbia

Ernst (2014) reports two experiences of discrimination by Serbian Rroma. In both described cases, one the refusal of entry into a McDonalds store, the other the expulsion of a cleaning lady from a bank, the moral courage of those affected had an impact on the outcome of theses injustices. In the first case, the woman who wanted to buy sandwiches in the fast food store for three Rroma children in Novi Sad complained to the local ombudswomen. She in turn sued McDonalds and won. In the second case, the cleaning lady turned to the media: The store manager, who had expelled Mrs Uskokovic from the bank, was put in the pillory of the media. Ernst sees the two incidents as examples of the importance of civil courage against socially tolerated discrimination. Only through the commitment of each and every person, can the exclusion of minorities be ended in the long term: “These are two unpleasant stories that confirm what is known or suspected about Roma discrimination in the Balkans (Mrs Uskokovic, the street cleaner from Nis, has a dark complexion, but it is unclear whether she refers to herself as Roma). Therefore, they is nothing news. […] But what is crucial: citizens as Maja Rogic and Lidija Uskokovic give rise to hope – because they do not put up with everything.”