A review of Klaus Michael Bogdal’s Book “Europa erfindet die Zigeuner– ‘Europe Invents the Gypsies’ which has just been published in English.
A reminder about the Television show in Vojvodina in Romanes and Serbian.
According to a recent survey in Serbia by the Roma Centre for Women and Children “Daje”, more than two-thirds of Roma women have been exposed to psychological or physical violence at least once.
The authors of this research state that, due to the specific culture of silence in the community, Roma women hesitate to talk about the violence they are experiencing. Being brought up in accordance with rigid patriarchal norms leads to them accepting violence as something normal and as an integral part of life. In addition, Roma women often do not recognize that they are exposed to violence.
We have a problem with these statements: Two third of the surveyed women may very well have been subjected to violence. But two third of all Roma women? How do they know? In addition, the patriarchal norms are not quite accurate.
An editorial on the last elections in May 2023 in Albania and on the Roma participation in politics.
In Germany, the number of reported crimes and discrimination against Sinti and Roma is increasing. The German federal government’s antigypsy commissioner complains about everyday racism that cuts across all areas of society. An interview with Mehmet Daimagüler about causes and solutions.
In 1972, the small village of Niederthann in the Pfaffenhofen district became the scene of a crime: four shots were fired, a young, pregnant Romni lost her life, and another was seriously injured. The historian and author Hans Woller has reconstructed the criminal case and will read from his new book “Hunting Scenes from Niederthann” on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Ingolstadt city library. A lesson about racism.”
On Friday, October 20, 2023, the Museum of Roma Culture in Brno hosted the award ceremony of the Museum of Roma Culture Award, which is awarded annually by the museum to personalities who have contributed to the development and preservation of Roma culture. This year, the prize was awarded in memoriam to Robin Strio, director, cameraman, Roma activist and former curator of the museum’s video collection, who died in the spring at the premature age of 33.
Not much this week in France on Roma. This is usual, if there are enough other news… In Toulouse, the 10thedition of Rencont’roms in the Balcanika festival. In Marseilles, schoolchildren not being able to do sports as the sports hall is being squatted by Roma; in the same city, 4 squats were evicted. Near Paris, a large open air garbage dump on the site of a former Roma camp is being cleaned up. Of course, it was all left by the Roma who lived there. Finally, two Romanian Roma who were stealing scrap metal were condemned in Niort.
The NGO “Center for the Affirmation of the RE Population – CAREP” organized a two-day workshop on the topic of democracy, and 20 young people from the municipalities of Nikšić and Plužine took part.
The workshop was realized as part of the “Young, brave, loud” project.
“With this project, we want to increase the degree of participation of young people in the local community, especially young people from vulnerable groups, and thus contribute to social cohesion in Nikšić and Plužine. Young people are very interested in our activities, and we will also have a two-day training on youth participation, English lessons language, swimming and music, but also a two-month, paid internship program for young people from the RE community”, explained Nardi Ahmetović, executive director of the NGO “CAREP”.
Bojan Kekec is a member of the National Council of the Republic of Slovenia. He gave an interview to the press on Roma saying that “Living with them is very difficult. I don’t know how they would look in Ljubljana or other places when a beehive or grain in a field is set on fire. Such actions are unacceptable. There is a lot of crime and misdemeanours.”
Again, the picture chosen is not an actual photograph of the places mentioned, but just a stock picture, perpetuating the stereotypes.
In the new composition of the Parliament of Slovakia, out of 150 representatives, as many as six are Roma. And not by some kind of key, but as elected representatives. Many Roma voted for the the party called “Ordinary people and independent personalities” (OľaNO) led by Igor Matovič, which is at the end, with 9% of votes won became the fourth largest party in the Slovak parliament. In some places with a majority Roma population, Matovic’s alliance achieved election results that were suspicious even to the police: while other parties got two or three percent each, OLaNO collected over 90% of the votes.
Alexey Pamporov is an associate professor of sociology at the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology at the BAS, teaches “Sociology of the Family” and “Roma History and Culture” at Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”.
He spoke about vote buying, especially among Roma – something that is often reported in Bulgaria. He says that actually, it is the sectional voting commissions that are often bought, and change the results after voting has been closed. This especially happens in Roma communities.
Also, he says that the Roma population is not increasing, as their birth rate is the same as for the rest of the population, and many of them emigrate.
The Roma show So vakeres (What are you talking about?) is broadcasted twice a month and is created by Roma journalists. It provides an opportunity to preserve Roma culture and present it to those who do not yet know it. Their creators hope and wish that these shows would also help to reduce prejudice against the Roma.
An exhibition in the Ingolstadt City Museum from Sunday, October 22nd deals with the persecution of the Sinti and Roma from the Ingolstadt region before, during and after National Socialism. The so-called “second persecution” after 1945 is also discussed: the long road to recognition of the genocide, the fight for compensation and against the police “special registration”.
An article about Manele, a modern form of Romani (or Roma) music in Romania. Using traditional Romani instruments and sounds, it also fuses other genres from the Balkans, Middle East, and India.
26 years after his brutal murder by two skinheads, family and activists commemorated the death of Dusan Jovanović.
In September 2023 they submitted a new proposal in which they specified a part of the park in public property to be named after Dušan Jovanović, but the authorities have not formally addressed and responded to the family of the murdered boy to date.
This settlement houses a yearly festival over the summer, the Varvy Bedřiška which helps providing support the unique Ostrava community. Just like the first two years, the 2023 edition combined musical and other cultural performances with current topics in the area of housing and the future of the locality.
This festival is key to helping this settlement as there are big plans for the restoration of Bedřiška but they are currently only on paper. Local residents are the biggest drivers of change.
The new Slovak prime minister Fico and his extreme right coalition partners are not exactly pro-Roma. Their first test will be on how to deal with the Roma of Telgárt, whose settlement burnt down over the summer and who are still housed in tents.
Fico will definitively need the office of the plenipotentiary for Roma communities, as for the first time, it has a large budget under its belt – it will distribute up to 400 million euros from European funds in the next few years, and also has greater powers.
An action plan for the development of the Roma community in the area of the municipality of Dobrovnik will be presented shortly. The plan was compiled by the Murska Sobota Development Centre and the Lendava People’s University.
“The action plan for the development of the Roma community in the Municipality of Dobrovnik is not just a text, but a document with clearly defined goals, innovative solutions and concrete steps. We believe that this plan will contribute to a brighter future for the Roma community and the entire municipality. Together, we will build solid bridges between different communities, promote inclusivity, understand aspirations and provide equal opportunities for everyone,” said the Mayor of the Municipality of Dobrovnik, Marjan Kardinar.
Another article about the need for a Roma councillor in the town of Dobruška where 350 Roma live. Apparently, only two Roma have work.
The newspaper put up a picture which has nothing to do with the subject, as it does not portrays the situation in that town, but rather shows a settlement somewhere, and of course shows poverty, a caravan etc.
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