Politics and the Roma in state-socialist Eastern Europe

Abstract

This article is a comparative analysis of state-socialist policies towards the East European Gypsies (Roma). I make two related arguments. First, the Gypsy policies of East European states evolved differently and resulted in considerable variation. Second, notwithstanding the state-socialist social control policies, a measure of independent Romani activism did emerge laying the groundwork for post-socialist Gypsy mobilization.

Equal Access to Education: An Evaluation of the Roma Teaching Assistant Program in Serbia

“…The nation we study is a post-communist nation and we believe that our findings are suggestive and applicable also to other Eastern European countries which share a similar political history with Serbia, but not necessarily to all other countries. During communism the Eastern European countries have implemented inclusive policies toward Roma and in this period the situation of Roma improved despite the fact that they remained at the bottom of all socio-economic indicators (Barany, 2000). In these countries Roma are predominantly sedentary and their assimilation process, especially with respect to education, has started a while ago.…”

The Power of Discourse: Reflections on the Obstacles to Social Inclusion of Roma in Serbia

“…High numbers of Roma children were enrolled in schools for children with special needs, despite the actual absence of preconditions for this, while drop-out rates for Roma children were very high. Educational attainment among Roma was generally worse than among the rest of the population and also their living standard, despite improvement, was in general not satisfactory (Barany, 2012). Their membership within the Communist Party was extremely low, with only 0.15% of Roma (1,406 persons) joining (Mitrović & Zajić, 1998).…”

“We are Romanian, not Roma”: Nation Branding and Postsocialist Discourses of Alterity

“…Such stereotypes feed widespread fears of Roma and are frequently exploited by right‐wing politicians and vigilantes to legitimize hostile actions against domestic or migrant Romani populations . At the same time, the grossly inequitable status of Romani people across Europe and the history of discrimination against them are well documented (e.g., Barany, ; FRA & UNDP, ; UNDP, ). As The Economist () summarizes: “On every social index, from income to life expectancy, from illiteracy to health, from criminality to child welfare, the Romanies do worse than any other European group.…”

“…Many Roma were resettled from rural areas to the “industrial belt” around major cities. Hastily constructed apartment buildings contained sections specifically for Romani families, effectively creating Roma ghettos at the periphery of “developing” Romanian cities (Barany, ; Crowe, ). Nevertheless, although Roma remained “at the bottom of virtually all socioeconomic indicators,” socialist policies that promoted full employment, along with the availability of “free education and healthcare, state assistance in housing and child‐rearing” did, in fact, result in some improvement in the living conditions of Romani people in Eastern Europe (Barany, , p. 421).…”