What does Trump have to do with Roma? Well, according to this Greek article, American Presidential Inaugurations are very much like Roma weddings. Actually not like Roma weddings, but what the journalist thinks Roma wedding are like.
Bad, as it perpetuates stereotypes.
An article about Roma weddings full of stereotypes. It says for example that “the Roma dream is not to make a big business, but a big wedding”. According to the article, weddings last a few days, there are a lot of guests, hundreds of thousands of euros are spent… But this cultural tradition of the Roma has also changed over time. Weddings used to last seven days, now “only” two to three days. Of course, there are exaggerations in these stories, because not everyone is so rich that they can afford to have their guests entertained by some real music stars. Those who are barely making ends meet have the selfless help of friends and relatives, so someone pays for the music.
Bad.
Almost nothing in the French press about Roma this week. Only one article about the screening of a movie on the fake news of Roma abducting children in Arles, on January 24th.
A series of photographs of Christian Baptists Kalderaša from the Transcarpathian region of the Ukraine. As usual, these kind of articles pander to stereotypes. Roma palaces, “mysterious” Roma, etc…
Bad for all.
The Slovene Minister of the Interior Boštjan Poklukar says that Slovenia is one of the safest European countries and that its crime rates are very low. The article goes on to say that “many people are probably left with a bitter taste when they remember the problems caused by Roma in parts of Slovenia or the past epidemic of robberies in Ljubljana by migrants”.
Bad.
Not much this week. A really bad news about a 23-year-old Rom who was arrested for reaping his 13 years old cousin that had been promised to him in marriage. The girl, from Romania, managed to escape and is now under protection. This is really bad as it enforces the stereotypes. Other than that, the extreme rightist Alain Soral who is being investigated for antisemitism is now also under investigations for rabid statements about Roma.
A re-edition of an article of a while back of a Vlach Romni from Slovakia who is teaching in a school. Unfortunately, all stereotypes are present: arranged early marriages, patriarchal society, etc…
Or how tabloids perpetuate stereotypes about Roma.
When a school child said he wants to become a senator, the teacher was shocked…
Another one of those articles … It is always from the same places, and gives the impression this is prevalent.
Bad.
An article highlighting the new generation of Roma activists, and of the importance of art in breaking down stereotypes.
A TV reportage in one of the largest Roma camps in France near Nantes in Western France. What is good, is that they say that these Roma only make about 20’000 people in the entire France, and that they are an essential pool of workers for the French agriculture… This is a real change of tone.
Other news are more of the usual: The government policies on Roma are being criticised (the news is that there seems to be one); the month for Roma action with a few events; a camp near Paris near a waste treatment centre; a project of a new site for Roma abandoned in Western France; and near Marseilles, some politics regarding drugs and Roma camps.
The employability of Roma in Slovenia remains a challenge, as they face high levels of unemployment and limited employment opportunities. According to data from 2002, about 15% of Roma were employed, while 85% were unemployed. They are for bright exceptions that prove that this is also possible. This is the case of Đani Stojanovič, who works at Komunala Novo mesto.
Why no journalist ask how one gets at such numbers if governments do admit they do not know how many Roma live in a country?
After the fall of communism, in the early 1990s, a significant number of Roma migrants from Romania appeared in Poland. According to this article, they engaged in organised begging (and other stereotypes). But the result was that for many Poles, Romanians and Roma were two interchangeable terms, i.e. all Roam are Romanians and all Romanians are Roma…
No comments.
In discussions about the Roma community, there are constant warnings about the need to improve the educational picture. Available estimates on the involvement of Roma in education show that the gap between Roma and the majority population is very large. Despite this, the situation has been slowly improving in recent years, and there are big differences within the Roma community. There is no official data.
“The myth that Roma are uneducated is not true,” Jože Horvat Muc, president of the Roma Association, told STA. As he estimated, there are “quite a few Roma who are educated” in Prekmurje. In the southeast of the country, however, the reality is different, as there are more Roma who do not finish school, he admitted.
A long reportage about the Western Ukrainian city of Uzhhorod. Beside speaking to residents, refugees, people getting rehabilitated, they also looked at Roma from the city. 6’000 of them lived there prior to the war, and now almost 600 of them are enrolled in the Ukrainian Army. In addition, there are Roma refugees from currently occupied territories.
Unfortunately, they also speak about “barons” (which do not exist), and other stereotypes.
Quite a number of articles this past week in France about Roma. A conference on the “Gypsy practises” mentioning nomads; another one on the persecution of Roma, Sinti, and Yénisches, which perpetuates some of the stereotypes; and an action to help Roma from a slum.
After that, a small commune in Western France which doesn’t want to expel Roma without a more permanent housing solution; and finally, a plethora of articles of a false rumour that a small village next to Nantes would see 500 caravans and Roma resettled there.
A reprint of a Guardian article in the Ukrainian press about Roma palaces in Hășdat.
Both articles pander to sterotypes…
More news this week about Roma in France. First, a photography exhibition about Roma in the Balkans. The issue, they speak of “nomad” populations, which is totally wrong in the Balkans. Second, it shows the usual pictures of poverty and many children, which is a result of exclusion, not Roma traditions. In brief, these exhibitions strengthen stereotypes.
A reportage in Nantes focuses on a new camp near the city and the controversies that it generates there. The story of a premature baby who was abbducted by its parents recently made the headlines in France. The parents were later stopped in Belgium. Here, the article says that the father and mother are Roma, that the father is a petty criminal and the mother a toxicoman.
The other news are more common: A camp near Paris and one near Toulosue were dismantled.
A Ukrainian translation of the article of the Economist about Roma in the Ukraine which, unfortunately, is not exactly up to the standards of this publication.
It states, for example, that almost half of the Roma who lived in Ukraine before the war fled Ukraine. But actually base themselves on Transcarpathian Ukraine. And anyhow, one doesn’t know how many Roma lived in Ukraine before the war…
Journalism on Roma is nearly always bad.
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