PART OF AN ARTICLE ABOUT THE HATE
> “Gypsies are not Romanians” – a very widespread idea in Romania.
The problem is not that the Roma don’t consider themselves Romanians, since the overwhelming majority of us do identify ourselves as Romanians. The problem is that you – that is the mass media and the greater part of the Romanian citizens who hallucinate that there exists such a thing as “pure ethnic” Romanians - consider us to be non-Romanian.
Starting from a truly false dichotomy – “you are either gypsy, or Hungarian, or Jew, or you are Romanian” – which is imposed upon public opinion by politicians who are paranoid or at best stupid, Romanian society has associated the word “gypsy” with a powerful social stigma through the many stereotypes it stubbornly promotes.
In case you are convinced that you have no problems with a racism that has become commonplace in Romania, especially since you have “gypsy” friends or you grew up with “gypsies” (the kind of foolish remarks most used when trying to show a “tolerant spirit”; although the claim of being “tolerant” is the first step towards racism and xenophobia) - well then you should have no problem if some foreigners mistakenly consider you to be a gypsy especially if you happen to be a little suntanned.
In this case “hey gypsy, how are you doing” shouldn’t offend you or unleash a powerful defensive reaction. And neither should the epithet itself.
> “Gypsies are gypsies and 'Roma' is one of their inventions after the revolution” – a Romanian journalist.
This makes it sound as if we have no right to be using the word “Roma,” which has always been in our own Romanes language, but should instead be using a word which is more familiar to you and which associates us with the great majority of the crimes, thefts, rapes, and acts of violence which proliferate in Romanian mass-media.
And to top it off, instead of being happy to be called “stinking gypsy” and those other similar nicknames such as “crow,” “gypsy-boy,” “darkie,” “gypsy princess” which clearly pinpoint the ethnic identity of criminals and allow anyone who reads the news to identify the “enemy”, we also have the effrontery to want to be Roma.
The problem is not that the Roma don’t consider themselves Romanians, since the overwhelming majority of us do identify ourselves as Romanians. The problem is that you – that is the mass media and the greater part of the Romanian citizens who hallucinate that there exists such a thing as “pure ethnic” Romanians - consider us to be non-Romanian.
Starting from a truly false dichotomy – “you are either gypsy, or Hungarian, or Jew, or you are Romanian” – which is imposed upon public opinion by politicians who are paranoid or at best stupid, Romanian society has associated the word “gypsy” with a powerful social stigma through the many stereotypes it stubbornly promotes.
In case you are convinced that you have no problems with a racism that has become commonplace in Romania, especially since you have “gypsy” friends or you grew up with “gypsies” (the kind of foolish remarks most used when trying to show a “tolerant spirit”; although the claim of being “tolerant” is the first step towards racism and xenophobia) - well then you should have no problem if some foreigners mistakenly consider you to be a gypsy especially if you happen to be a little suntanned.
In this case “hey gypsy, how are you doing” shouldn’t offend you or unleash a powerful defensive reaction. And neither should the epithet itself.
> “Gypsies are gypsies and 'Roma' is one of their inventions after the revolution” – a Romanian journalist.
This makes it sound as if we have no right to be using the word “Roma,” which has always been in our own Romanes language, but should instead be using a word which is more familiar to you and which associates us with the great majority of the crimes, thefts, rapes, and acts of violence which proliferate in Romanian mass-media.
And to top it off, instead of being happy to be called “stinking gypsy” and those other similar nicknames such as “crow,” “gypsy-boy,” “darkie,” “gypsy princess” which clearly pinpoint the ethnic identity of criminals and allow anyone who reads the news to identify the “enemy”, we also have the effrontery to want to be Roma.
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