Category Archives: Czech Republic

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

School Segregation in Czechia

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In the Czech Republic, there are still 130 segregated schools where Roma make up at least a third of the students. Veronika Hlaváčová’s documentary brings the experiences of Roma whose children ended up in such classes and points to the vast differences in the quality of education.

“Normally, the teacher leaves us there and goes to the office because she has her child there. Completely disinterested,” describes Zdeněk in the documentary. He attends the eighth grade along with 14 other Roma. “We come to school, the teacher comes, we have mathematics and he tells us, for example, to write something down and we do whatever we want for the rest of the lesson,” he adds.

 

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czechia: Children’s Book

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The illustrated book Jekh, duj, trin! [One, two, three!] introduces children to the everyday life and traditions of an ordinary Roma family and prepares them to enter school.

Well, with a few stereotypes…

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

NGOs and Roma

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The Roma Council of the City of Brno (RRB) expressed serious concern over the selection of Martin Máša as the new director of the IQ Roma service organization. According to the council, a long-term problem is that Roma themselves are not included in leadership positions in organizations that focus on helping Roma.

Nothing new, unfortunately…

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czech Romani Music

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On August 22, an energetic Roma Bašavel was held as part of the 21st International Festival of New Circus and Theatewr Letní Letná. The main stars of the evening were DJ GADJO CZ, the Roma band Trio Romano and the young dance star Lily Sarah Ščuková.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czech Politics

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On Monday afternoon, Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS) visited the infamous Mojžíř housing estate in Ústí, where a large group of Roma live and where unemployment lies at around 80%. He heard complaints from some of the old settlers about the mess, the smell and the swearing. The visit was planned to start the campaign for the autumn regional elections.

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Roma Memory Map

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A delegation of Roma human rights defenders from five countries in North and South America visited Poland and the Czech Republic from August 1 to 11. The main reason for her arrival was the 80th anniversary of the extermination of the so-called “gypsy camp” in Auschwitz-Birkenau. During its trip, the delegation also presented the Roma Memory Map in America project, which shows places associated with Roma life in North and South America. So far, 29 places are described on the map, and their number will continue to expand.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Artificial Intelligence

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The Czech SPD movement, qualified as neo-fascist by some news agencies, has been using artificial intelligence again to produce images which it then used in its political campaign. After the “imported surgeon”, an African migrant with a knife, this time it shows Roma children with cigarettes. The photo’s caption says: “They say let us go to school, but ours are on the hook”. The non-profit organization Romeo, which has already sent a criminal complaint, has already spoken out against the image.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czech Agency for Social Inclusion

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Roma representatives are complaining that the Agency for Social Inclusion cannot effectively solve the problems of excluded localities. “Roma have a role on a theoretical level, but their real representation is weak,”  according to Marian Dancso, deputy chairman of the Government Council for Roma Minorities. “Solving social exclusion is a self-governing competence of the municipality, we cannot do it for it,” s director Martin Šimáček defends the agency for social inclusion.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

We Grow

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The twenty-third meeting of Roma high school and university students called BARUVAS, which means “We grow” in Romani, starts today, August 23. This week-long summer school will be characterized by education, inspiring workshops focused on personal growth, self-knowledge and a deeper understanding of Roma history. Participants will have the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities that will offer them new knowledge and skills that they can use in their personal and professional lives.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Roma Bašaven

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On Friday, August 23, Prague 4 will host the fifth edition of the Romany Bashavel event. The event will take place again in the popular Cultural Center on Novodvorská from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The main star will be Slovak rapper and musician P.A.T., who promotes the so-called Roma Rap – a combination of rap and Roma traditional music, which was also accepted by the original fans of his “harder” work. ROMEA TV broadcasts the event live.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Czechia: Agency for Social Affairs

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Citizen members of the Government Council for Roma Minority Affairs and representatives of the organization RomanoNet today issued a statement calling on the government of the Czech Republic to immediately suspend all decisions regarding the future of the Agency for Social Inclusion (ASZ) and to start a broad public discussion about its future. They stated that the participation of Roma in the ASZ is only a formal one.

Czech Republic Europe News Eastern Europe Poland

Interview of Zeljko Jovanovič

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Zeljko Jovanovič, the president of the Roma Foundation for Europe and a long term activist calls for the community to look to the future and learn from the past. “I would like young Roma to see themselves as a source of collective strength. Let them work as a collective to build a higher level of resistance,” he said in an interview for iROZHLAS.cz at a conference on the anniversary of the Roma Holocaust in Poland.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Festival in Lovosice

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Roma cuisine, attractions for children, and music are in the program of the 7th Roma festival in Lesopark Osmička in Lovosice, which takes place on August 17 from 12:00 and will last until late at night. Look forward to Roma dance groups from all over the country, as well as Roma singers and bands.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Reflections on Lety

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Some reflections on the memorial of the former concentration camp of Lety, in Czechia with a question: Will the trees that have been planted there become tall before racism against Roma disappears?

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Roma Memory Map

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Presentation of the Roma Memory Map for America, which is a project created from the contributions and engagement of Roma, Roma and pro-Roma civic organizations, human rights defenders, academics, public officials and other members of the public, August 8, 2024, Prague.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Nominations

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The Office of the Government Council for Roma Minority Affairs (RVZRM) has announced a call for nominations of female and male candidates for membership in this important government advisory body. The call responds to the approaching end of the term of office of some current members and the need to supplement the Council with new citizen representatives. Applications and nominations can be submitted until September 30, 2024.

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Roma Memory Map

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Making the presence and history of the Roma community in South and North America visible is the goal of the Memory Map Roma for America. It captures the places that are important to the Roma communities living in the given countries. Martin Fotta from the Ethnological Institute of the Academy of Sciences, who participated in the creation of the map, said this at today’s presentation.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe

Prague Pride

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Prague Pride festival, which officially began on Monday evening on Strelecky Island in Prague. The LGBT+ festival is taking place for the fourteenth time. It culminates this coming Saturday with a rainbow pride parade. The organizers expect that 70,000 people could participate in it. The festival also includes a Roma program organized by ARA ART.

Czech Republic News Eastern Europe Slovakia

Google Translate

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In June, Google announced that it had expanded the language palette of Google Translate by 110 languages. One of them is Romanes. According to linguist Viktor Elšík, it is good that the Romani language is represented in a virtual public space. However, Elšík adds that it is necessary to take into account the fact that the translations are not according to the north-central Romani language, which is used in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Well, in fact, the Romanes used in Google translate does not correspond to any single dialect of Romanes. It is a mix of all dialects.

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