NGO Strategies for Hungarian and Roma Minorities in Central Europe

NGOs sponsor a variety of innovative projects relating to the Hungarian and Roma minorities in Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine, as well as for the Roma in Hungary. However, a study of 33 NGOs in this region reveals that the strategies behind these projects tend to vary according to the particular group being addressed. NGO projects emphasizing Hungarian minorities tend to utilize network strategies to increase contact between Hungarians and titulars (Romanians, Slovaks, and Ukrainians), while projects for Roma tend to avoid network strategies, focusing exclusively on status-raising strategies. This paper presents the promises and shortcomings of both approaches, and concludes with an analysis addressing why NGOs should be less hesitant to apply network strategies to Roma projects as well as to Hungarian projects.     

Rethinking integration and identity: Chinese migrants in the Republic of Ireland

Using historical narratives and a qualitative research approach, this paper analyses the social, cultural and cognitive causes of differentiation and stratification among Chinese migrants in the Republic of Ireland. It discusses individuals’ diversified capabilities, attitudes and actual levels of integration, as well as their disparate patterns of self-identification. In the research area of Chinese migrants in Ireland, in-group diversity and its implications is still a novel research topic. With this introductory work, the authors seek to draw more attention to this particular group, especially to the need for studies of encounters between subgroups and longitudinal investigations. The paper points out that subgroups of Chinese migrants in Ireland are divided according to social classification and self-categorisation, which have distinct significances for subgroup members’ integration and identity.     

Local resident composition in the community and local identity among rural migrants in Guangzhou,China

In China, how does the proportion of local-born residents in a community shape the local identity of rural migrants who do not have the local hukou that would allow them to enjoy the local benefits and welfare provided by the government? Our findings show that despite their socially marginalized status, the migrants' level of local identity is strongly related to community composition. Our study is based on data collected recently in Guangzhou, a major city in southern China that has been a popular destination for rural migrants. We found that living in a community with a high percentage of local residents significantly improves the local identity of rural migrants. However, frequent social interaction with local residents mediates this relationship in a community where about half of the residents are local. We also found that the migrants' subjective perception of socioeconomic status positively mediates the relationship between the proportion of local residents in the community and the local identity of rural migrants.     

Different and unequal: the educational segregation of Roma pupils in Europe

This article analyses and welcomes the decision of the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights which held that the use of special schools for Roma pupils was contrary to the right to an education coupled with the prohibition on discrimination. The decision has wide ramifications for the education of minority, particularly Roma, pupils who are often sent to remedial schools or special classes as an alternative to mainstream, integrated education. It is argued that such segregation, whilst it may arise from a legitimate intention to address educational disadvantage, cannot achieve such a goal in a climate of separation and intolerance which permeates the wider society. The Grand Chamber’s willingness to scrutinise the wider societal context and to allow statistical evidence to suggest a prime facie case of indirect discrimination, will be welcomed by those seeking a more pro‐active non‐discrimination platform from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR).     

Roma and the politics of double discourse in contemporary Europe

ABSTRACT

The article analyses the politics of ‘double discourse’ in relation to Roma that has evolved in contemporary neoliberal Europe. On the one hand, the double discourse promotes the integration, rights and equal opportunities of Roma, on the other, it denies recognition of, and ways to address, enduring structural violence and rising social insecurity. The article argues that the politics of ‘double discourse’, as a neoliberal approach towards Roma, is structured by two contradictory discourses that speak to different audiences, using duplicitous approaches to create anti-Roma consensus and maintain the critical difference and subordinated position of the racialised Romani populations in Europe. By studying the representation of Roma in the cases of so-called 'child theft' in Greece and Ireland, and in the recent ‘refugee crisis’, the paper identifies and discusses three dimensions of contemporary neoliberal double discourse: racialised de-Europeanisation, neoliberal undeservingness and (dis)articulation of citizenship.     

Shifting visibilities: the social implications of a Roma aesthetic

ABSTRACT

This paper is a personal reflection by a Roma artist upon the mutual influence of Roma social relations and Roma visual culture. Strategies of art making are considered via analyses of contemporary Roma art works. It is suggested that historic marginalisation and continuing discrimination have determined the contingent nature of the Roma aesthetic resulting in keen facilities for adaptation and obscured visibility. Roma artefacts are shown to employ these resistant characteristics of Roma visuality to convey social, cultural, artistic and political agency via visual and performative means. The conclusion calls for a reconceptualisation of Roma visibilities so that we as Roma might forge new political unities and new forms of politics to more effectively challenge embedded Romaphobia.     

What does it mean to be a girl with qizhi?:Refinement,gender and language ideologies in contemporary Taiwan1

This study investigates the relationship between ideologies of language and gender as manifested through sociolinguistic interviews conducted on college campuses in Taiwan. The interviews consistently and systematically revealed the use of a term, qizhi– roughly equivalent to ‘refined disposition.’ This paper examines the implications of this preoccupation. Through an examination of the contextual use of qizhi, this study shows that, first, qizhi is commonly associated with a range of social practices, among which linguistic practices play a significant role. Second, qizhi is often used to describe, evaluate, and further regulate women's ways of speaking, although its use is not gender exclusive. Third, common linguistic varieties in Taiwan, such as Mandarin, Taiwanese, and Taiwanese‐accented Mandarin, are associated with qizhi to varying degrees. This study demonstrates how talk centered on qizhi serves as a meeting ground of social evaluation, linguistic and discursive practices, gender ideologies, and language ideologies.     

Romani culture and academic success: arguments against the belief in a contradiction

Roma, today perceived as the most numerous European minority, face marginalisation and exclusion. Education is considered to be one of the focal points for improvement, and numerous studies have analysed and reported on the educational situation of Roma. Several studies have argued that Romani cultural values are not compatible with institutional schooling and that Romani families perceive schools as an alien institution. Other studies have drawn upon cultural–ecological theory (CE theory), developed by Ogbu and colleagues, and argue that the Romani cultural frame of reference is oppositional to academic success and thus suggest that successful Romani students distance themselves from Romani culture. The paper discusses the application of CE theory in the context of the academic discourse about the educational achievement of Romani students. Drawing on interviews with Spanish Romani university students, the paper argues that Romani students themselves challenge the assumption that educational success leads to cultural alienation.     

Shaping the right to education for Roma children: a case study of present practices in Ghent,Belgium

Western European cities are increasingly confronted with Roma immigrants. Societal changes associated with this phenomenon create new challenges for schools. Using a case study, this article sheds light on present practices that shape the right to education for Roma children. Three principal success factors are distinguished: boundary-blurring practices, a lifeworld-oriented approach and commitment. Finally, the relation between promising practices and a rights-based approach to educational justice is discussed.     

Negotiating employability: migrant capitals and networking strategies for Zimbabwean highly skilled migrants in the UK

In this paper we focus on highly skilled migration from Zimbabwe to the UK, exploring these migrants’ social capital sources/structures and content. In doing so we pay attention to routes of migration and how they shape migrants’ networking capabilities and patterns. We further take a Bourdieusian perspective and explore the intersection between social capital and cultural capital in the process of migrants’ negotiation of employment opportunities, giving closer attention to how the distinctive habitus associated with being highly skilled migrants from Zimbabwe shape migrants’ attitudes towards work. By exploring the interplay between external processes and internalised structures, we bring to the fore the multiple positioning of our participants, who we see not as simply depending on social networks, but as complex actors whose negotiation of employability in the UK is shaped by various factors including intersecting aspects of differentiation.     

Community identity and language change in North American Anabaptist communities

Patterns of language maintenance and shift among historical German-speaking North American Amish and Mennonite communities reveal ways in which these groups have utilized language to encode and mediate group identity. The Old Order Amish and the Old Order Mennonites have maintained German to resist secular authority, to remain separate from the dominant society, to preserve the traditions of their forefathers and, above all, to mark themselves as Old Order. More liberal groups have shifted to English to demonstrate a commitment to evangelism and a rejection of Old Order practice. This paper supports the view that individual communities may actively direct language change. Guided by an ideology that invests particular patterns of language use with religious significance, each Amish and Mennonite community determines its own linguistic fate.     

Exploring the unknown aspects of Roma community in Cyprus and the role of social work practice

The status quo of Roma communities in Europe is strongly marked by marginalisation and discrimination. Roma people tend to face social exclusion and segregation leading to lack of education, chronic unemployment and limited access to healthcare, housing and public services as well as widespread poverty. Very few studies have been conducted as far as Roma community in Cyprus are concerned and almost none has explored quality of life of this ethnic minority. Therefore, this article examines quality of life dimensions in approximately half of the population (n?=?156) residing in the catchment area. Both quantitative and qualitative results showed poor standards of living, high school dropout rates and high levels of marginalisation. Social work as discipline can foster a more empowering and coordinating role as to enhance Roma’s distinctive identity and improve standards of living.     

Abnormalising minorities. The state and expert knowledge addressing the Roma in Italy

This article expands the research on abnormalisation and the construction of social deviance of minorities. It focuses on the relationships between state practices, policies and expert knowledge addressing the Roma in Italy; it does so by first contextualising recent ethnographic findings on Turin authorities’ social inclusion practices addressing Roma within the history of national and regional policies for Roma; it then contextualises those policies within the history of expert knowledge about Roma. Unlike what other studies on abnormalisation suggest, we argue that the abnormalisation of Roma in Italy is not primarily predicated upon the idea that they are at present unfit to follow the norms of the majority; rather, it stays upon a historically rooted representation of Roma oscillating between the poles of potential re-educability and potential dangerousness. In the conclusion we encourage further comparative research on abnormalisation, especially including practices and knowledge addressing other European minorities such as the Jews.     

Roma in the Romanian Educational System: barriers and leaps of faith

One of the most serious problems facing Romania today is the education of one of its largest minorities, the Roma, especially since such a high percentage — some estimate over 27% ‐‐ of this minority go unschooled and are illiterate. This paper looks at the current situation of Roma within the Romanian educational system, and begins to discuss some of the reasons why the system is failing to educate thousands of Romani children. In addition to this, it will highlight an educational effort to overcome a system, which, unfortunately, works against and not in favour of the education of Roma students.     

The Roma Voice in the European Union: Between National Belonging and Transnational Identity

This article examines the response of Roma activists to the Italian Roma crisis in 2007 and 2008. The Roma community has become targets of discriminatory policies in Italy, such as forced evictions and ethnic profiling by the authorities, which construct Roma as distinct from the Italian nation. Roma activists increasingly circumvent national political structures and instead regard the European Union (EU) as an ally in redressing discriminatory policies in member states. In the absence of a kin state to lobby and advocate on their behalf, Roma activists, working in the transnational political context, articulate their voice and demands to the institutions of the EU. In doing so, they construct a transnational identity which on the one hand reifies Roma to a homogeneous group, whilst on the other hand contributes to the idea that Roma are not a constitutive component of the dominant nation. This article uses the Italian Roma crisis as a particular episode in which transnational Roma activists responded to a nationally based crisis and explores the impact of this on issues of national belonging.     

Moving images of exclusion: Persisting tropes in the filmic representation of European Roma

ABSTRACT

This paper analyses the most prominent tropes in the earliest and most recent filmic representations of Roma. Stereotypical images of Roma abound in many fictional features as well as documentaries, from the representation of Roma as eternal nomads to racially prejudiced depictions of Roma women and the alleged innateness of music to Roma. Because images and modes of representation change over time, the paper juxtaposes the earliest portrayals of Roma with those produced in the last 15 years. The analysis particularly centres on two dominant reoccurring tropes: types of spaces typically occupied by Roma in film, that is the lack of a place or so-called placeless-ness of Roma; the gendered other, or the Roma woman and the culturally and ethnically othered Roma musician. Ultimately, by analysing how these tropes have persisted in varying forms over 100 years, this work points to the filmic imagery that perpetuates antiziganism, but also how the same has changed over the years to offer possible counter-narratives.     

Literary Narratives of the Past: Generations of Memory and Everyday Life Under the Romanian Communist Regime

ABSTRACT

In Romania, the literary approach to the recent communist past centred on everyday life under the communist regime is usually associated with a nostalgic communist perspective. By reading communist nostalgia in the context of the communist politics that pervaded every aspect of everyday life, this paper traces the connections between narratives and moral responsibility at the level of Romanian literary productions. Many of the topics included in the collective volumes that bring together personal narratives of the past resonate with and influence the fictional creations of the past; in many cases, combining personal testimonies with fictional characters offered an improved mechanism for dealing with the past. The paper argues that the topic of daily life experiences under the communist regime can be further developed, raising awareness of the lack of discussions about moral responsibility at the societal level in post-totalitarian Romania. Even if the younger generations can use the literary narratives of the past to re-appropriate their predecessors’ life stories, the reduction of the past to visual or linguistic stereotypes deepens the separation between public and private memory.     

Intercultural policies and the contradictory views of teachers: the Roma in Catalonian schools

In this article, we examine the contradictions and lack of consistency between various levels of discourse relating to Roma educational policies. Policy-makers have claimed that political interventions would positively impact the progress of Roma. However, the results have been mixed. We argue here that teachers need to re-evaluate their roles as politically aware and culturally informed agents in order to guarantee social justice to a historically disadvantaged ethnic minority. Based on ethnographical fieldwork carried out over a two-year period with Spanish Roma children, both in schools and in their families, this study shows how intercultural policies have failed to impact the educational realities of Roma children.     

The contextual effect of trust on perceived support: Evidence from Roma and non-Roma in East-Central Europe

In recent years, trust has been conceptualized as an important source of social capital, setting off cross-disciplinary research on both the benefits and predictors of trust at the individual and contextual level. In this paper, we turn to the individual outcomes of living in a trustful context, and explore the relationship between trust, itself one of the main components of social capital, and social support, seen as one of the most important effects of social capital. In particular, we ask how social capital—and the relationship between trust and social support—functions in the context of unequal societies. We model perceived support as an outcome across three levels, from no support to proximate to distal support, and using a cross-national study of Roma and non-Roma across 12 European countries, we track the relationship between trust and support across both mainstream and marginalized populations. Our findings suggest that living in contexts with more trust has protective effects particularly for members of marginalized groups: the Roma are more likely to have distal support in contexts with higher trust. We conclude that contextual trust helps to broaden the circle of support beyond family and friends; thus, trust can indeed be a synthetic force that binds individuals together in broadened structures of support.     

Skateboarding behind the EU lorry—the experience of Romanian professionals struggling to cope with transition while assisting care leavers

As a result of the fall of communism in 1989, the Romanian system of public care for children experienced massive shifts in its structure and ethos. One vulnerable area in any such system is the care leaving stage when young people can fall between the childcare and the adult protection systems. This article draws on a qualitative study that focused on the preparation and early outcomes for care leaving in Bucharest. This was undertaken between December 2002 and March 2004 by Anghel, a Romanian researcher reading for a PhD in England. The research aimed to explore the care leaving process through the views and experiences of the care leavers and the childcare professionals. The article briefly describes the structure and legislative base of the care leaving system in Romania, and discusses the political context created by the EU accession process. It then explores some of the themes emerging from the interviews with the professionals operating the system and discusses them within the overarching theme of transition within transitions: the transition of the young people within the context of transitions simultaneously being experienced by the professionals, the childcare system, and the entire society.