Romaphobia in the UK Right-Wing Press: racist and populist discourse during the Brexit referendum

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“…This has led to the portrayal of the begging ban as an endeavour to either curtail an undignified practice or maintain public order (Barker 2017;Hansson 2023), while neglecting to address the wider socio-economic factors contributing to begging. In contrast to other European media that ascribe a collective image of criminality to the Romani community (Kroon et al 2003;Breazu and McGarry 2023), Swedish media demonstrates greater subtlety in its representation of minorities (Breazu and Machin 2024). As will be demonstrated, the narrative within the two newspapers focuses on 'begging' as a distinct phenomenon rather than on the individuals partaking in such activities, implying that the proposed prohibition targets a 'phenomenon' rather than the people involved.…”

“…This long-standing marginalization has resulted in perpetuating the cycle of poverty and social exclusion for Romani people (Kócze and Rövid 2017). As with other European media, these discourses are little or infrequently articulated in Swedish media (Breazu and Machin 2018;Breazu and McGarry 2023), with few references to the historical marginalization and social exclusion experienced by Romani communities in Romania and Bulgaria. References to the ill-treatment Roma face in their home countries is no way to understand why people resort to begging: rather, it serves to divert responsibility elsewhere.…”

“…European media frequently has represented Roma as exotic outsiders, depicting them as primitive, unclean, and inclined toward criminal behaviour (End 2017;Breazu 2020). Common stereotypes have included portrayals of Roma as nomads, unable or unwilling to settle into mainstream society, as beggars or involved in petty theft (Breazu and McGarry 2023;Hansson 2023). These harmful narratives have served to marginalize Roma, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and social exclusion.…”

“…The 2015 European refugee crisis, when large numbers of asylum seekers from the Middle East and North Africa sought safety and better living conditions in Europe, triggered a new wave of xenophobia and anti-immigration sentiments across the continent (Ekman 2019;Hagelund 2020). Research has shown that these anti-immigration sentiments have also extended to other groups, such as Roma, Eastern Europeans, or Muslims (Brljavac 2017;Breazu and McGarry 2023). Populist politicians and far-right political parties have exploited these fears, often promoting explicit racist and xenophobic agendas.…”

Decontextualizing a Ban on Begging: A Multimodal Critical Analysis of Media and Political Discourse in Sweden

“…European media frequently has represented Roma as exotic outsiders, depicting them as primitive, unclean, and inclined toward criminal behaviour (End 2017;Breazu 2020). Common stereotypes have included portrayals of Roma as nomads, unable or unwilling to settle into mainstream society, as beggars or involved in petty theft (Breazu and McGarry 2023;Hansson 2023). These harmful narratives have served to marginalize Roma, perpetuating a cycle of poverty and social exclusion.…”