Category Archives: News Western Europe

Discrimination in Germany

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Discrimination in Germany

Marcella Herzenberger is the chairwoman of the regional association of German Sinti and Roma in Swabia. In this role, she has been working for years to raise awareness about a very specific form of racism directed against Sinti and Roma. This racism manifests itself in deeply rooted prejudices, discrimination and exclusion, extending to structural disadvantages in education, employment, housing, and everyday life.

Resistance / Six Centuries

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Resistance / Six Centuries

An article in El Pais about Roma resistqance and the new generation. Unfortunately, they mix up their history. They say six centuries in Europe. Roma have effectively been for six centuries in Western Europe, but for much longer in the Balkan and in Greece.

This is always the same misreading of history, and from a normally good paper. And in addition they state “Roma people”… Would they say Spanish people? Or just Spaniards?

Annoying.

Racism in Berlin

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Racism in Berlin

Sinti and Roma are increasingly subjected to discrimination. In 2025, the documentation center on anti-Gypsyism run by the Amaro Foro association recorded the highest number of incidents since documentation began: a total of 293 cases – an increase of approximately 19 percent compared to the previous year. According to the association, the actual number of cases is likely even higher.

French Chronicle …

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French Chronicle …

Lolita Cercel, the AI Romani Singer, managed to make it to the French press. So dit the Council of Europe. The rest is unfrotunately the usual, with Roma having been evicted near Nates in Western France, have nowhere to go. And in another place, Roma are being threatened with eviction.

Vienna Memorial

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Vienna Memorial

After a very long time, Vienna will erect a memorial to the Roma and Sinti victim of the Holocaust in the Weghuberpark in Vienna-Neubau, built in front of the Ministry of Justice.

Django Reinhardt Movie

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Django Reinhardt Movie

A movie from 2017 about Django Reinhardt. While other Sinti across Europe are persecuted, Django’s popularity allows him to feel safe – until the Nazis try to send him on tour to Germany. Django refuses. His Parisian lover helps him, his pregnant wife, and his mother go into hiding near the Swiss border. There he meets members of his extended family, who are also on the run. He plans to cross Lake Geneva into Switzerland, but the Nazis are hot on his heels.

Well, the Swiss denied him Entry …

Roma in Berlin

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Roma in Berlin

After years of complaints and repeated police operations, the Berlin authorities are finally pulling the plug: The controversial Roma accommodation in the “BB Hotel” in Berlin Schöneberg will no longer be used to house the homeless, with many Roma under them.

French Chronicle …

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French Chronicle …

French news last week were dominated with a reportage from TF1, state TV about how minors are exploited by Roma networks to maximise gains. Again, this might be part of the reality, but how it is presented is simply pandering to sterotypes and extrapolating to all Roma. In brief, a racist narrative.

Other news, the usual: closure of a camp near Orange, in the Sotuh of France, and a fight between Roma (according to the extreme right Breizh info).

Burgenland

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Burgenland

On the occasion of International Roma Day, the Roma National High School last week invited young people to a youth event in the Borta Open House (OHO). Young members of the Roma, Croatian and Hungarian ethnic groups participated. The main topic was networking and involving young people in political processes.

German Police

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German Police

A police operation involving a 25-member Roma family at the University Hospital of Cologne has had repercussions: Police in Bonn are now investigating six Cologne officers on suspicion of incitement to hatred. Bodycam footage is to be reviewed.

In December 2025, a Roma family celebrated the birth of a child in the foyer of the University Hospital of Cologne, triggering a police operation. The result: A complaint against the university hospital from the Rom Association, which advocates for the rights of Sinti and Roma, as well as a criminal complaint and a formal complaint filed with the Cologne Police Headquarters. Now it is clear: The operation could have far-reaching consequences for six police officers

Roma Camps in Italy

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Roma Camps in Italy

For a long time, Italy parked Roma in segregated camps that were de-facto ghettoes. Now the trend reverses, and 50 camps have been closed in the last 10 years, with 63% fewer people living in slums.

“One Hundred Camps,” the annual report on the condition of Roma and Sinti in Italy, compiled by the Associazione 21 luglio, captures the collapse of an “architecture of discrimination” used for decades to manage migration flows fleeing the Balkan wars.

Hamburg and Roma

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Hamburg and Roma

With a cross-media public awareness campaign, the social services authority of Hamburg, Germany, aims to send a message against anti-Gypsyism and for greater visibility of Roma and Sinti in Hamburg. Posters, flyers, short videos on screens in the S-Bahn and U-Bahn, and social media all call for respectful coexistence.

April 8th – Germany

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April 8th – Germany

Some of the activities and articles about April 8th in Germany.

France and the Genocide

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France and the Genocide

A Roma association is calling for France to recognize the genocide of the “Sinti, Gitans, Manouches, Yenish, and Travellers.” The association, represented by lawyer and writer Anina Ciuciu, great-granddaughter of Romanians deported during the Second World War, initiated a proposed resolution, which was placed on the agenda for April 8th in the European Affairs Committee of the National Assembly.

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