Osada, the Slovak name of Roma settlements, are slowly changing. Here the story of new hairdresser in a new house in the settlement in Medzev, Eastern Slovakia.
- Romské osady na Slovensku se mění. V Medzevu rostou nové domy a barbera Daniela čeká stáž v USA. In: iRozhlas. 18.05.2024. https://www.irozhlas.cz/zpravy-svet/romske-osady-na-slovensku-se-meni-v-medzevu-rostou-nove-domy-a-barbera-daniela_2405181128_kac
More on May 16th
Two articles on the Roma resistance day and the commemoration in Auschwitz of the resistance of Roma inmates.
- OŚWIĘCIM. Romowie oddali hołd uczestnikom buntu w KL Auschwitz. In: Oświȩcim Online. 27.05.2024. https://www.oswiecimonline.pl/oswiecim-romowie-oddali-hold-uczestnikom-buntu-w-kl-auschwitz/
- Zabudnutí hrdinovia. Pred 80 rokmi sa Rómovia v Osvienčime postavili presile, aby získali čas. In: Romano Forum. 16.05.2024. https://romanoforum.dennikn.sk/zabudnuti-hrdinovia-pred-80-rokmi-sa-romovia-v-osviencime-postavili-presile-aby-ziskali-cas/
May 16th
On Thursday, Roma honoured the memory of the Roman inmates who rebelled in the so-called “Zigeunerlager” that was part of the German KL Auschwitz II-Birkenau. The president of the Roma Association in Poland, Roman Kwiatkowski, emphasized that through their actions they retained human dignity.
- Romowie uczcili pamięć przodków, uczestników buntu w KL Auschwitz. In: TVP Krakow. 16.05.2024. https://krakow.tvp.pl/77560020/romowie-uczcili-pamiec-przodkow-uczestnikow-buntu-w-kl-auschwitz
International Program on Genocide
The Museum of Polish Jewish History is announcing recruitment for an international program dedicated to the memory of the Holocaust of Roma and Sinti. The program is addressed to educators and museologists from the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland. Applications are due by May 30th.
The program will last from June to October 2024 and will include two study visits in Brno and Berlin and a series of online meetings. Working in international groups, participants will develop educational ideas related to the commemoration of the Holocaust of Roma and Sinti, which they will present to a wider audience during an online event at the end of the program.
- Pamięć o Zagładzie Romów i Sinti. Międzynarodowy program dla edukatorów i muzealników. In: Polin. https://www.polin.pl/pl/pamiec-o-zagladzie-romow-i-sinti-miedzynarodowy-program-dla-edukatorow-edukatorek
Ukrainian Roma Refugees in Poland
Ewelina Bosak from the W Stroną Dialogu Foundation stated that 87 Roma from Ukraine are camping in the waiting room of the railway station in Przemyśl. There were 44 people there on Sunday, and on Thursday morning there were 87. Most of them were children, the youngest of whom is eight months old. There is also a pregnant woman and a man with cancer.
- Na dworcu PKP w Przemyślu koczuje 87 uchodźców. Nie ma ośrodka, który mógłby ich przyjąć. In: Wyborca. 16.05.2024. https://rzeszow.wyborcza.pl/rzeszow/7,34962,30977155,na-dworcu-pkp-w-przemyslu-koczuje-87-uchodzcow-nie-ma-miejsc.html
Bulgaria, Ukraine, and Switzerland
The Bulgarian press took the statements of the head of the Asylum system in the Canton of Bern for truth: That Roma used faked Ukrainian papers to abuse the Swiss Asylum system. The title is as false and racist: “Roma flock to Switzerland for aid with fake Ukrainian passports.” The picture used is also not relevant, as it shows carriages, which is definitively not the mean of travel chosen by the Ukrainian Roma who ask for asylum in Switzerland.
- Роми се стичат в Швейцария за помощи с фалшиви украински паспорти. In: Svobodno Slovo. 12.05.2024. https://svobodnoslovo.eu/svyat/romi-se-stichat-v-shveycariya-za-pomoshti-s-falshivi-ukrainski-pasporti/133601
Czechia: Mediation
A round table, attended by representatives of the police, as well as the local Roma and Ukrainian communities, together with the mayor Lukáš Seifert and the representative for the Roma minority Lucie Fuková, took place in the Knight’s Hall of the Vlašské dvor in Kutná Hora. The aim of the meeting was to calm the tense situation after the recent attack by a Ukrainian of a Rom between, which culminated in a Roma demonstration on Palackého náměstí with a parade on Masarykova Street.
- Vzájemné pochopení a dialog: Romové a Ukrajinci zasedli spolu ke kulatému stolu. In: Kutno Horsky / Denik. 15.05.2024. https://kutnohorsky.denik.cz/zpravy_region/kutna-hora-kulaty-stul-romove-ukrajinci-dialog-potycka-demonstrace.html
Fico and his Attacker
Apparently, the person who shot the Slovak Prime Minister yesterday is a writer from a small town in central Slovakia who has also published racist statements against Roma.
- Je podezřelý z atentátu na slovenského premiéra Fica rasista? Ve své knize píše o „bezostyšných cikánech“. In: Romea. 15.05.2024. https://romea.cz/cz/zahranici/je-podezrely-z-atentatu-na-slovenskeho-premiera-fica-rasista-ve-sve-knize-pise-o-bezostysnych-cikanech
Czechia and Roma
According to social worker Jiřina Somsiová, the vast majority of the Roma are socially excluded in the Olomouc Region. Only the lucky few, who came to the Czech Republic immediately after the war, live in their own appartments. Those who immigrated later, typically from Slovakia, have no chance to find or rent normal housing and are therefore dependent on overcrowded hostels. Jiřina Somsiová, a field social worker with thirty years of experience is also the co-founder of the Community of Roma in Moravia.
- Romové nemají šanci bydlet jinde než na ubytovně. Platí i 20 tisíc, říká sociální pracovnice. In: Olomoucky Report. 13.05.2024. https://olomoucky.report.cz/spolecnost/romove-nemaji-sanci-bydlet-jinde-nez-na-ubytovne/
Czechia: Project
A project called “Everyone Together”, supported by Norwegian funds, lasted two and a half years in Tábor, Czechia. It enabled more insight in the relationship between the Roma and the majority population in Tábor and into the problems of the Roma. Around six hundred of them live in the town of Tabor which has 34 thousand inhabitants. However, it is clear from the results of surveys, polls and analyses, that a lot of work still needs to be done.
- Výsledek analýzy: Romové se cítí v Táboře bezpečně. In: jcted. 13.05.2024. https://www.jcted.cz/81936-vysledek-analyzy-romove-se-citi-v-tabore-bezpecne/?liveMode=1
Lety: Interview
An interview with Karolina Spielmannová from the Museum of Roma Culture in Brno about why it took 30 years to be finally able to open the memorial on the site of the former concentration camp of Lety.
- Po třech dekádách je v Letech místo vepřína památník obětem romského holokaustu. In: Stisk Online. 13.05.2024. https://stisk.online/a/Siptb/po-trech-dekadach-je-v-letech-misto-veprina-pamatnik-obetem-romskeho-holokaustu
Trnava, Slovakia, and Beggars
A worrying article about an increase of beggars in the town of Trnava in central Slovakia. Most of these beggars are local Roma, and according to the article, people feel threatened by them.
Bad.
- V Trnave Na hlinách to začína vrieť. Obyvatelia sa sťažujú na žobrajúcich ľudí. Kvôli peniazom ich až prenasledujú. In: Trnavak. 13.05.2024. https://www.trnavak.sk/clanky/1738/v-trnave-na-hlinach-to-zacina-vriet-obyvatelia-sa-stazuju-na-zobrajucich-ludi-kvoli-peniazom-ich-az-prenasleduju
Ukrainian Roma Children
There is an increasing number of Roma children from Transcarpathian Ukraine in need of integration in the education system in Switzerland. Besides the normal language barrier, the main challenge is that many of these children have never been to school in the Ukraine. This poses an even bigger challenge to the towns who have to integrate them.
- De plus en plus d’enfants roms ukrainiens doivent être scolarisés en Suisse. In: RTS. 13.05.2024. https://www.rts.ch/info/regions/geneve/2024/article/de-plus-en-plus-d-enfants-roms-ukrainiens-doivent-etre-scolarises-en-suisse-28501293.html
Roma and Ukrainians
Dialogue and striving for mutual understanding are the key to peaceful coexistence, agreed the participants of the reconciliation round table, which took place on Thursday in response to the recent conflict in Kutná Hora, during which one of the local Roma was attacked by a Ukrainian citizen. Subsequently, a demonstration was held by part of the local Roma community. The government representative for the Roma minority Lucie Fuková, the mayor of Kutná Hora Lukáš Seifert, representatives of the police and the local Roma and Ukrainian communities took part in the meeting.
- VIDEO: Kulatý stůl smíření v Kutné Hoře. Romové a Ukrajinci hledali porozumění po nedávném napadení Roma a následné demonstraci. In: Romea. 12.05.2024. https://romea.cz/cz/domaci/video-kulaty-stul-smireni-v-kutne-hore-romove-a-ukrajinci-hledali-porozumeni-po-nedavnem-napadeni-roma-a-nasledne-demonstraci
Khamoro
An article on the upcoming 26th edition of the international Roma festival in Prague that will last an entire week starting on May 26th.
Džemil Silajdžić, the producer and dramaturg of the festival said: “We tuned the program up to the last minute, and I can promise that everyone will really enjoy it. I believe that this year’s Khamoro will be at least as successful as last year, when we celebrated our twenty-fifth birthday and enjoyed the huge interest of visitors. We are very much looking forward to everyone who loves Roma culture or is just starting to discover it. Khamoro shines for everyone.”
- Koncerty i gastronomická show. Festival Khamoro už po šestadvacáté přiveze do Prahy to nejlepší z romské kultury. In: Lidovky. 10.05.2024. https://www.lidovky.cz/orientace/kultura/festival-khamoro-romska-kultura-praha.A240510_142711_ln_kultura_hma
Official Opening
Many articles in the Czech press about the official opening of the memorial on the site of the former concentration camp of Lety.
- Paměť místa a místo paměti. Památník v Letech u Písku nabízí návštěvníkům dvě expozice, říká ředitelka Muzea romské kultury. In: Česky Rozhlas, 12.05.2024. https://radiozurnal.rozhlas.cz/pamet-mista-a-misto-pameti-pamatnik-v-letech-u-pisku-nabizi-navstevnikum-dve-9232624
- Památník holokaustu Romů a Sintů v Letech se otevřel veřejnosti. In: ¸Vesky Noviny. 12.05.2024. https://www.ceskenoviny.cz/zpravy/v-letech-se-pro-verejnost-otevre-pamatnik-holokaustu-romu-a-sintu/2517332
- Památník romského holocaustu v Letech se otevřel veřejnosti. In: O24. 12.05.2024. https://ct24.ceskatelevize.cz/clanek/domaci/pamatnik-holocaustu-v-letech-se-otevira-verejnosti-349120
Kamill Erdős
A travelling exhibition called “I’ll find you with God, my brother!” with the subtitle “Gypsy Stories” elaborates and presents to the public the Erdős Kamill legacy preserved in the collection of the Erkel Ferenc Museum in Gyula, i.e. the results of the research conducted among the Roma in Hungary in the 20th century – this time in Kápolnásnyé, at the Halász Gedeon Event Center.
- Cigány történetek Erdős Kamill gyűjteményéből Kápolnásnyéken. In: FEOL. 08.05.2024. https://www.feol.hu/helyi-kultura/2024/05/cigany-tortenetek-erdos-kamill-gyujtemenyebol-kapolnasnyeken
Lety
The Roma and Sinti Holocaust Memorial in Lety na Píseck will be opened to the public for the first time today. It stands on the site of a former concentration camp for Roma from the Second World War. From today at 12:00 p.m., a commemoration of the victims of the Roma Holocaust is being held in the memorial area. ROMEA TV broadcasts the course of the memorial service live. It will be attended by Senate President Miloš Vystrčil (ODS). The memorial will open to the public at 3:00 p.m.
- PŘÍMÝ PŘENOS: Tradiční pietní akt k uctění památky obětí romského holokaustu v Letech u Písku. In: Romea. 12.05.2024. https://romea.cz/cz/domaci/primy-prenos-tradicni-pietni-akt-k-ucteni-pamatky-obeti-romskeho-holokaustu-v-letech-u-pisku
- V Letech se pro veřejnost otevře Památník holokaustu Romů a Sintů. In: Česki Noviny. 12.05.2024. https://www.ceskenoviny.cz/zpravy/2517332
- Jana Horváthová: Památník v Letech umožnila změna v postoji vlády, společnost také udělala znatelný pokrok. In: Romea. 11.05.2024. https://romea.cz/cz/domaci/jana-horvathova-pamatnik-v-letech-umoznila-zmena-v-postoji-vlady-spolecnost-take-udelala-znatelny-pokrok
French Chronicle …
Not much this week in France about Roma. There were enough other themes this week …
An association helping Roma to access schools in the Lyon region; a relocation in better condition for a Roma camp in Strasbourg; and the closure of a camp near Paris.
- En banlieue lyonnaise, une association ramène les enfants roms ou sans domicile fixe vers le chemin de l’école. In: Le Pélerin. 05.05.2024. https://www.lepelerin.com/france/education/en-banlieue-lyonnaise-une-association-ramene-les-enfants-roms-ou-sans-domicile-fixe-vers-le-chemin-de-l-ecole-9497
- Vers un déménagement négocié des Roms du bidonville de Cronenbourg. In: Rue 89.07.05.2024. https://www.rue89strasbourg.com/demenagement-negocie-roms-bidonville-cronenbourg-301198
- Livry-Gargan – Vaujours : le bidonville de l’allée de l’Est a été démoli après le départ de ses occupants. In: Le Parisien. 08.05.2024. https://www.leparisien.fr/seine-saint-denis-93/livry-gargan-vaujours-le-bidonville-de-lallee-de-lest-a-ete-demoli-apres-le-depart-de-ses-occupants-08-05-2024-GM3DT7KY2BC3NKJ4XNIN4TGQ7Y.php
A Historian on Lety
Anna Míšková, a co-creator of the Lety exhibition, described the creation of the camp, life and death within it, and also talked about the pre-war position of the Roma in Czech society. She said that even before the establishment of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, there were proposals for the establishment of labour camps, there was often an effort to expel the Roma from the territory of the municipalities where they lived.
Well, nearly all Roma from Czechia died in the Holocaust.
- Historička: Českoslovenští dozorci kradli v letském koncentračním táboře pro Romy vězňům jídlo. In: iRozhlas. 08.05.2024. https://www.irozhlas.cz/veda-technologie/historie/historicka-ceskoslovensti-dozorci-kradli-v-letskem-koncentracnim-tabore-pro-romy_2405080600_cen
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