The Roma of Romania

By Lakshita Paidipati

The men drag us out, the stars and moon shining above

Lakshita Paidipati

11:11 AM Oct 23

This is a reference to how many Romani families back then and today are forcibly evicted or expelled
from their homes

passed onto us by time

Lakshita Paidipati

11:11 AM Oct 23

In other words, ancestral

People walk past and stare, their hatred barely disguised.

Lakshita Paidipati
 11:25 AM Oct 23

The Romanian public especially has negative views of the Roma

‘Tsigans’

Lakshita Paidipati

11:12 AM Oct 23

The Romanian word for gypsy. It is also the same word used for slave. Perhaps this is a reference to
the 500 years of slavery they endured. Either way, it is considered a racial slur.

Arriving centuries ago

Lakshita Paidipati

11:22 AM Oct 23

The Roma migrated to Europe many centuries ago from India to escape war and persecution.

thieves, witches, and animals

Lakshita Paidipati
 11:22 AM Oct 23

Not to mention fortune tellers, mystics, dangerous sexual predators, femme fatales, etc.

Dracula

Lakshita Paidipati

11:17 AM Oct 23

Vlad the Impaler, voivode or governor of the Wallachian principality in the mid to late fifteenth
century. He was the real life inspiration for Dracula, and had acquired a reputation for committing
acts of brutality, but today is regarded as a national hero of Romania for preventing the Ottomans
from invading the country.

NOT SO FUN FACT: Most of the people who fought against the Ottomans were (probably enslaved)
Roma, and they never got credit for their services. They also built several important monasteries and
increased Romania's wealth by mining for gold, all of which they also were never credited for.

Slaves in chains, promised freedom, swam to shore, only to be left drowned in the creek

No wonder they say, “You drowned like the Gypsy on the shore.”

Lakshita Paidipati

11:18 AM Oct 23

True saying inspiring by this event occurring.

Copied from Research: Enslavers entertained themselves by torturing slaves: chained Roma up and
told them to cross a lake, go to the shore, they would get their freedom, but when they were almost
there, the enslavers would tug the chains back, leaving them in the water to drown. Inspired the
saying, “You drowned like the Gypsy on the shore.”

In punishment, they cut off our tongues, and oh how it stung

Lakshita Paidipati

12:18 PM Oct 23

During chattel slavery, Roma used their language to communicate to each other secretly and safely
about escape routes, food, protection, safety, and survival.

Enslavers couldn’t understand what they were saying, so they decided to criminalize the language,
cutting the tongue out of any Romani person who spoke it. Traditionally, henceforth, the Romani
language is not spoken in front of Non-Roma by some Romani people as a defense mechanism.

Some Europeans, however, forced Roma to teach them their language so that they could win their
trust, and betray it later, like Nazi anthropologist Eva Justin.

Eventually, they saw how cruel it was, and broke our chains

Lakshita Paidipati

12:16 PM Oct 23

Abolition: Aristocrats went to Western Europe, inspired by philosophy and arguments from the
American abolition movement. Uncle Tom’s Cabin inspired many abolitionists, and became the first
American novel to be translated into Romanian. Mihail Kogalniceanu was a prominent abolitionist.
 Transylvania became the first principality to abolish slavery in 1783, followed by Moldavia in 1855
and then Wallachia in 1856. But of course, there were many loopholes, and some enslavers found
ways to hold onto their slaves, but by and large, the Romani people before and after slavery were
treated like dirt in Romania and Eastern Europe regardless.

They experimented, tortured and killed us, until just a few remained

Lakshita Paidipati

11:29 AM Oct 23

Almost the entire Romani population of Europe was exterminated during the Holocaust. In addition
to that, the Roma also went through terrible and inhumane experiments, especially under the hands
of Josef Mengele, who particularly was attracted to Romani children and twins. The Roma also went
through terrible experiments by a young German anthropologist by the name of Eva Justin. Justin
learned the Romani language to trick the Roma she experimented on into believing that she was one
of them in order to win their trust as Roma typically avoid sharing their language with non-Roma, but
when Justin spoke their language, they thought she was of them. After Justin was done with her
experiments, she sent the Roma to the concentration camps to die. She also never faced
repercussions for her actions.

They had the gall to ignore and blame us for our own woes

Lakshita Paidipati

11:33 AM Oct 23
 The German government insisted that the Roma genocide was not racially motivated, but rather
because the Roma were persecuted because they were criminals. Despite the fact that SO MUCH
EVIDENCE pointed to the contrary, and even the fact that they were listed for extermination alongside
Jews under the Final Solution, the world believed them. The crimes against the Roma received no
recognition in the Nuremberg trials, and it wasn't until almost forty years later, that the German
government finally recognized their actions against the Roma. Yet, even today, the Roma genocide
receives little to no recognition.

Being Romani in Spain

By Lakshita Paidipati

cantoar

Lakshita Paidipati

12:20 PM Oct 23

Singer

tocoar

Lakshita Paidipati

12:20 PM Oct 23

Guitarist
 for telling the story of my people

Lakshita Paidipati

12:22 PM Oct 23

Flamenco is often used as a method of storytelling, with the dancer (bailaor (m) or bailoaora (f)) acts
as a protagonist and interpreter to the narrative. The dance (baile) displays sensuously fluid motion
that is stylized and highly personal. It involves arm (braceo), upper torso, hand and finger movement
(florea), intricate footwork (zapateado) and heelwork (taconeo).

It is the only traditional dress I can wear without fear

Lakshita Paidipati

9:32 PM Oct 22

This is the references to the fact that many Romani women who wear their traditional dress in public
are often discriminated against and racially profiled, but the flamenco dance, is often not just
associated with the Roma but also with Spain and Spanish culture in general, so really anyone could
wear that dress without fear of going through the same thing. (As far as I know). Yet many
non-Romani woman who wear Romani dress are not discriminated against.

Though somewhat benign compared to other nations,

 Lakshita Paidipati

12:12 PM Oct 23

Spain has become less hateful towards Roma in recent years, but a large portion of the population
still remains scornful of them.

Would still leave me insulted, violated, or perhaps even slain

Lakshita Paidipati

12:11 PM Oct 23

Roma today are subject to rape, racial profiling, police brutality, etc.

Simply being Roma would lose me my life and occupation

Lakshita Paidipati

12:11 PM Oct 23

Having your Romani ethnicity known to your employer would make them possibly fire you and finding
jobs can be very difficult as a Roma

Segregated,
 Lakshita Paidipati

11:56 AM Oct 23

They are also often treated worse in schools and given a less quality education.

Of Romani descent overcomes the odds

Lakshita Paidipati

11:21 AM Oct 23

Because of the stereotypes that most of them are poor or thieves.

living and money situation

Lakshita Paidipati

11:21 AM Oct 23

Many Roma today live in poverty and suffer from a poor quality of life due to lack of access to basic
needs.

Carmen Amaya
 Lakshita Paidipati

11:20 AM Oct 23

Carmen Amaya (“the greatest flamenco dancer of all time”) - a Spanish Calé (Gitano) Romani dancer.
Audiences were mesmerized with her because she was an amazing dancer, and also because she
was a woman performing in traditionally masculine styles of flamenco, which were reserved and
taught only to men because “women couldn’t handle it.” She also wore traditional masculine clothing
while dancing, shattering gender norms and expectations within and without Romani culture. Today,
women are often the face of flamenco, but in the past, this art was largely the work of men, and
thanks to Carmen Amaya, it is no longer that way.

The Same Discrimination

By Lakshita Paidipati

They force us to steal it all and everything else that night

Lakshita Paidipati

12:28 PM Oct 23

During the Kosovo war, the Serbian police forced Roma to carry out activities related to violence
against the Albanains, such as transportation of dead bodies or stolen goods.

In the end, me and one sister are all that remain

 Lakshita Paidipati

12:28 PM Oct 23

During the Kosovo War, Roma had to do undergo forced labor, forced child labor, torture, murder,
rape, vandalism, robbery, mobilization, and abduction, and displaced as refugees after the war just
like the Albanians.

But they turn their nose, for Serbians and Roma are one and same

Lakshita Paidipati

12:29 PM Oct 23

The Serbians often forced the Roma to cooperate under threat of losing social benefits and aid,
which led to the Kosovo Albanians believing that they were Serbian collaborators. After the war, they
were scorned by the Albanian community and they were second priority to them in regards to
receiving aid, even though they were subject to the same violence and displacement as they were.
Estimates suggest the 543 Roma were murdered, 593 abducted/missing. They are also second
class today in regards to how refugees in