What Americans Can Learn From Gypsy Culture

Wilderness House Literary Review announces a one hour lecture by noted Gypsy (Roma) scholar Sonia Meyer at 7:00 P. M. on October 14, 2009 at the Out of the Blue Gallery in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Tickets are $5.00 at the door. Topic is "What Americans can learn from the Gypsies."

Littleton, Massachusetts (PRWEB) September 6, 2009 -- Wilderness House Literary Review is pleased to announce a one hour lecture by noted Gypsy (Roma) scholar Sonia Meyer at 7:00 P. M. on October 14, 2009 at the Out of the Blue Gallery in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Tickets are $5.00 at the door.

Sonia Meyer will speak about the Roma (Gypsy) culture and what we can learn from them in this high tech, money-worshipping society. She hopes the audience will look inside the Gypsies self-exiled world, and come to realize that their freedom is available to all of us.

Sonia Meyer was born in Cologne, Germany in 1938 and spent her formative years living in the woods among partisan and Gypsy fighters during WWII. She has been fascinated by Gypsies, or the Roma people ever since becoming a self-educated scholar of Roma (Gypsy) culture.

Meyer, who may indeed be part Gypsy herself has been intrigued by the freedom, the art, and the celebration of magic and mysticism of the Roma people. She encountered them throughout her travels in Europe, and struck up fascinating conversations with these enigmatic vagabonds. She lived much of her life like a Gypsy, moving from city to city across Europe, and eventually landing in the states. In Geneva she worked with Jewish refugees, she spent time with the Bedouins in the Negev desert, eventually moving to the States.

In the narrow and winding stacks of the Widener Library at Harvard she discovered a translation by Matteo Maximoff, Russian Gypsy, which concerned Russian nomadic Gypsies. She visited him, and traveled to Macedonia to visit the so-called "Queen of the Gypsies," and lived with a family in the Gypsy section of Skopje where the Gypsies were well off.

She is the author of a novel to be published in the Summer of 2010. "Dosha" is about a Gypsy girl. The novel spans her childhood spent with Russian partisans in Polish forests to her defection during Khrushchev's visit to Helsinki on June 6, 1957. "Dosha" will be published by Wilderness House Press (www.wildernesshousepress.com) and will be excerpted in the spring issue of Wilderness House Literary Review (www.whlreview.com ). For further information see www.soniameyer.com.

For further information contact Steve Glines, 978-800-1625 - Industrial Myth & Magic (www.industrialmyth.com ) is a public relations firm specializing in literary persona and events.
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Sonia Meyer: A local writer who throws a light on the secretive Gypsy culture.

By Doug Holder
Off The Shelf

I admit it. I was among the ilk that bought into the tired stereotype of the Gypsies as jobless vagrants, with a lot of kids, living in a tent camp, with the requisite dancing and fortune teller. I never took the time to think of them as anything more than stick figures. Being a Jew I heard from my relatives about the atrocities my family and the greater Jewish people experienced under the Nazis. But the Gypsies also suffered greatly. Why wasn't this talked about in school and at home? I really needed a serious education. That's when I ran across Sonia Meyer. I interviewed her and she introduced to a world that I was woefully ignorant of. Meyer is a novelist, as well as a scholar of Gypsy culture, who has completed a novel about a Gypsy girl named: "Dosha."

The Gypsies have lived and criss-crossed Europe for 600 years. They were among the first European settlers to enter our own country. Yet most of us, know them only through prejudice.

Sonia Meyer was born in 1938 in Cologne, Germany into a multi-ethnic family, who was very opposed to the Nazi regime. When co-agitators started to be publicly hung on street-corners, Sonia's family left overnight and made for the German hinterlands and later the dense forests in Poland, where they survived in the company of partisans and some Gypsies the Germans had not managed to capture. Flushed out by the victorious Russian army, who often killed those who had escaped the German massacres, they returned across a devastated land and killer fields to a Cologne that was leveled to the ground. Again she came across and befriended a group of Gypsy children.

Like them she would ultimately leave the memories of war and its aftermath behind, by simply walking into the future. Helped by a wealthy aunt, her travels would take her across the world, through a variety of professions to finally settle in the United States, where she had a family and entered the most noble of Gypsy professions of all, the breeding and dealing of horses.

Having found peace and happiness after a tumultuous journey, she started to long for the one part missing in her life, Gypsies. She decided to look into the history of the people she had found comfort with during the tumultuous years of war and its horrible aftermath.

But some twenty plus years ago, there was close to none research material on the Gypsies available. At Harvard's Widener library, she discovered a translation of a novel by a Russian Gypsy, by the name of Matteo Maximoff. She contacted him and they became fast friends. She then immersed herself in the life of Gypsies, traveling to Macedonia, and Kosovo and Hungary pursuing her research. And now Meyer has completed a novel, tentatively titled" "Dosha", that tells the tale of a Gypsy girl Dosha. The novel is bookended by Nikita Khrushchev's state visit to Helsinki in 1957. The story is of, a Gypsy, and her hardscrabble childhood spent with Russian partisans in Polish forests, to her defection during Khrushchev's visit..... .

In her research, her travels, when she lived with them, followed them to some sacred Gypsy sites, Sonia was struck how familiar their way of thinking and living was to her. And thinking back at the nomadic life most of her mother's siblings, she finally asked her mother who was on her death bed, "That grandfather of mine, the dark one, the one who worked in the circus with horses, the one who kept leaving home all the time, was he...a Gypsy? Her mother replied:

"I was not born under a wagon...so I decided long ago to declare myself a Rhinelander...as you by now should know: reality is like a rubber band. You can stretch it anyway you desire." This always stayed with her.

Meyer, a self-taught scholar of Gypsy culture and history is concerned with a possibly precedent setting case in Florida. For the past 5 years Broward County has been trying to seize the property of the Christian Romany Church, whose 300 Roma members are considered ethnic Gypsies. The County feels it has the right of Eminent Domain, overriding the Religious Freedom Law. Has the disregard for the human rights and equality followed them all the way to this country?

There is a last minute twist, in this long-drawn out fight of the Gypsies for what they consider rightfully theirs. The County did win the suit, and settled with the Roma church for a certain amount of money,not enough however to buy a new church. The Gypsies were given six months to vacate the church. Those six month were expiring at the end of August. Suddenly, several county officials are questioning the decision of depriving the Gypsies of their church. "That's just it," Sonia informed me with great excitement. "That's why I chose this country to live in. No matter how tough things get, here there is always hope."

Time running out for Gypsy church

FORT LAUDERDALE - In the eight years Dan Tennis has had a church, he has helped countless people through donations, food drives, and something money can't buy: faith. Today he says faith and prayer are the only things that can save the site of his Christian Romany Church from being taken by the county.

After a four-year legal battle and a court-ordered extension that allowed the church to remain where it is, time is running out. The extension ends Aug. 31. Broward County wants to build a replacement facility for the Broward Addiction and Recovery Center and its Sexual Assault Treatment Center on the church site.

But the city of Fort Lauderdale and nearby residents want the county to find another spot. Three weeks ago, the city commission approved a resolution urging the county to pursue the development of the new rehabilitation facility elsewhere.

"The church is doing something good for the community ... and we want to preserve it as much as possible," said Commissioner Romney Rogers.

The site has been zoned for a church for half a century and the city commission would have to approve the rezoning of the site for the rehabilitation and sexual assault center. But city officials are concerned that the new facility is at the bottom of the county's budget list and Broward won't have the funds to operate it.

For the past three years this has been resident Cliff Iacino's ultimate nightmare.

"Could there be anything conceivably worse than a church being put on the street," said Iacino, president of the Edgewood Civic Association. "If they're not ready to go, then why kick them out? ...They're paying $4,000 a month and maintaining the property."

The county's plans call for expanding the rehabilitation center, currently located in Sailboat Bend, from 34 beds to 50 beds in a new 38,500-square-foot facility and making the new sexual assault center large enough to accommodate the clients and staff who use it, said Mike Elwell, director of the detox center. Money for the almost $30 million project was set aside years earlier, and Elwell said both facilities still will operate within their existing budgets -- about $14 million for the detox center and $2.8 for the sexual assault center.

The funds to run the centers is included in the county's proposed budget, but the Broward commission won't give final approval on what stays and what goes until September.

In the meantime, the church's attorney says he'll ask the court for another extension. But if it's not granted, Tennis and his wife are concerned that they'll have no place to move the church to. The couple has been looking for alternate properties but have found nothing affordable.

Even with a hefty deposit, banks are not lending money.

"To get another church they have to get another mortgage and I think everyone knows that it is very difficult to get a mortgage in this economy," said Brian Patchen, the church's attorney. "It is even more difficult to find a bank that would give a loan to a church."

And losing the church, said parishioner Robert Mitchell, means losing more than just a place of worship – they would also be losing a place where they pass on the Gypsy traditions and language.

"By taking away the church they're taking a piece of our culture," he said.

Defining The Gypsy Issue Correctly

A German author recently published a study which lists all the wrong the Romanian society inflicts upon its Gypsy population.

It is not the first time a foreigner comes to Romania and finds it guilty for deeds his or her own country is found guilty of by the international community. The German author goes that far as to state that Romania is to blame for abiding by the policy of deportation of Gypsies to Germany's death camps, which was enforced upon it by the regime in Berlin.

It is high time, however, for a list of the wrong the Gypsies inflict upon the majority population in Romania. For, while we do have a Gypsy population and a Gypsy problem to solve, we also have, for instance, an Armenian population and no Armenian problem to solve.

The key phrase is, therefore, integration to the majority population lifestyle - or not.

The problems the Gypsies have in Romania does not result from an innate discriminatory attitude Romanians have, as the German author claims, but from the innate inability of Gypsies to integrate.

One cannot solve a problem unless it properly identifies it.
I recall being seated at a wedding party next to a Gypsy man dressed in a smart white suit. When he accidentally spilled coffee on his trousers, I exclaimed: "Oh, what a pity to have smeared your trousers!" But, he said "not at all, this is not dirt, it is coffee ..."

There, in a nutshell, stayed the collision of two different takes on what dirt is made of.

One can notice the same different take from the pitiful status social dwellings were brought to by their Gypsy inhabitants. What was the Romanian state giving them houses to do: clean their rooms and empty their night pots?

After 1990 a lot on nongovernmental organizations with shady sources of income took upon themselves to elevate the status of Gypsies in Romania, strictly monitoring the Romanians' behavior towards the Gypsies.

While the real issue is to monitor the behavior of Gypsies towards the majority population, who resist the cultural integration to the majority population, where ever that majority may be located in Europe.

Translated by Anca Păduraru

Country’s first gypsy festival hits Lahore

Festival to display gypsies’ products, stage theatrical performances

By Ali Usman

LAHORE: The first gypsy festival of the country, in which gypsies from far-flung areas of the country will participate, will commence at the Children’s Library Complex on Friday.

The festival will contain stalls and handicrafts depicting the true culture of gypsies. Around 800 gypsies are expected to attend the festival that is organised by Grass-root Organisation for Human Development (GOHD).

Meeting: Civil society representatives, lawyers, and elders of gypsies will hold a conference to discuss various problems facing the gypsies. The role of government departments in bringing the gypsies to the mainstream population will also be discussed. Government officials from various departments will attend the meeting.

Festival: The festival will put on display the products associated with the traditions and culture of gypsies. Apart from advertising their products, gypsy performers will show their art at the festival.

GODH Project Director Ahmad Bin Tariq told Daily Times at least 300 children of gypsies would attend the festival. He said gypsies from Multan, interior Sindh, and other parts of the country would depict their indigenous cultural traditions.

Tariq said gypsies from the city’s slums had confirmed their participation in the festival. He said food stalls, puppetry performances, folk singing, and theatrical performances would amuse the audience at the festival. “Many characters of gypsies like Behrupia are dying. We aim to preserve these characters along with other traditions of gypsies,” Tariq said. He said it would also help in bridging the gap between the public and gypsies.

Culture Minister vows to help sea gypsies

PHUKET: The government has set up a national-level committee aimed at resolving land rights issues and other problems affecting Moken and other sea gypsy communities in the Andaman Coast region.

Minister of Culture Teera Slukpetch on Friday afternoon visited five sea gypsy villages: the Moken villages of Ban Lam Lah and Ban Hin Look Diaw in Mai Khao; the sea gypsy village on Koh Sireh in tambon Rassada; and the two sea gypsy villages in Rawai.

At all five villages land rights issues were among the problems raised, along with poverty and a loss of traditional culture and way of life.

In some cases, youths in the communities no longer know how to fish or speak the language of their ancestors, Mr Teera was told.

Despite some of the communities having been established over 100 years ago, most sea gypsies do not have title deeds to the land they inhabit.

In some cases the land is state property, but in other cases, most notably in Rawai, the land is claimed by private sector landholders with title deeds who want to evict them.

“The government has set up the national committee and appointed me as chairman. This committee will resolve the problems of sea gypsy and Moken communities in Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi and Ranong,” Mr Teera promised.

The government would be flexible in finding ways to resolve land rights issues on a case-by-case basis.

Communities inhabiting state land will be allowed to remain there, he said.

In cases where other parties claimed the land and had title deeds to prove it, the committee would conduct a study to see if the title deed was issued before or after the community was established.

A provincial committee on sea gypsy issues will also be set up in each province with the provincial governor chairing the panel, he added.

The Culture Ministry will also build “culture centers” in each village to help preserve their way of life and educate future generations. Phuket is set to receive 10.2 million baht to set up five centers in fiscal 2010.

These centers will be promoted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand as a way of generating extra revenue for the communities.

Many other countries use local culture, including that of indigenous tribes, to promote tourism, he said.

The government is committed to establishing sustainable tourism that will benefit all sides, he added.

Sea gypsies is a general term used in English to refer to people commonly called chao ley (“sea people”) by Thais, though the government typically refers to them as khon thai mai (“new Thai people”) as part of its efforts to integrate them into mainstream Thai society.

Some sea gypsies in Phuket are part of the Moken (or Morgan) tribe of seafaring people, while others belong to the Ourak Lawoy tribe.

Gypsy movie shown in Fremont Saturday

Feb 18, 2009

FREMONT — The second film of a four-part Foreign Film Series will show 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Dogwood Center in Fremont.

"The Crazy Stranger," directed by Tony Gatlif, spins a story of a wandering hero and includes scene after scene of Gypsy music, dance, and the carefree and spirited zest for life that permeates the Romany culture. Filmed in the Romany language, with English subtitles, this 97-minute film contains adult content and language.

Tickets are $7.50 per person, which includes the Apres Film social gathering in the Dogwood lobby after the film. Tickets are available from the Dogwood box office or at the door.

Gitane: Sexy, sophisticated gypsy food. Really.

By Molly Freedenberg

To take a page from Dani Leone's book, I have a new favorite restaurant. It's Gitane, opened by the same people who brought us Cafe Claude, and it's fantastic. Of course, I might be a bit biased. The name "Gitane" means "gypsy woman," and indeed, the restaurant's interior and menu was designed with gypsy culture in mind. Having been told my whole life that I'm descended from gypsies and horse thieves (on Mom's side, from the Slavias), I felt a kinship with this place before I'd set foot inside the deceptively small building. Plus, in a town brimming with neuvo Californian, Asian fusion, Pan-American, and upscale Southern cuisines, there was simply something refreshing about someone doing something I'd never heard of before.

So several weeks after the eatery's grand opening, I scooped up a friend with a sophisticated palate and a sense of adventure and headed downtown. We knew not to expect some kitschy regurgitation of gypsy stereotypes, but we had no idea we'd find a place so eclectic, classy, interesting, and sexy. We fell in love with the bar area, a narrow corridor with dark patterned walls and reflective ceiling, giving the illusion of great amounts of space without sacrificing a sense of intimacy and warmth. Our bartender was fantastically helpful and friendly (not to mention cute cute cute), and seemed to be a true lover of cocktails. The bar's signature drink, The Gypsy, was a delightful twist on the St. Germain's elderflower trend - a light, subtly sweet, complex concoction with an herb-y finish and easy drinkability. My companion ordered the 1862, named for the year of the Cinco de Mayo massacre after its primary ingredient (tequila) and made ambitiously interesting by the addition of Campari. It was suggested as an apperitif, and though it was far too bitter and biting for both of us, would probably delight dedicated Campari fans.

(MORE)

Exploring Bulgaria’s Minority Population: The Gypsies

Many people searching for property in Bulgaria are advised often by Bulgarian real estate agents to avoid villages with high gypsy populations. However many people who find themselves living in areas with many Roma residents have found that crime and social problems are low and no different to any other rural area in Bulgaria. In fact, many people have become firm friends with their gypsy neighbours and whilst it would be unwise if not impossible to move into a true gypsy ghetto, living in an area with a high ethnic population is not as detrimental as Bulgarians make out.

(MORE)

'Caravan' Puts Light On Gypsy Culture

August 26, 2008

Gypsy Caravan: When the Road Bends (Docurama, 2008) — Director Jasmine Dellal didn't set out to combat racism when she made "Gypsy Caravan." She just wanted to show off the wide variety of Gypsy musical styles seen throughout the world. But the overall message of this concert film is nonetheless racial enlightenment, as it shows members of one of the world's most misunderstood and shunned ethnic groups in a joyful and, more importantly, multidimensional light. These Gypsy musicians are so different, and their cultures so diverse, that at first when they get together to put on their show they don't see eye-to-eye about anything. They gradually warm to each other's differences and put on a lively performance that travels across the United States. In-depth profiles of each Gypsy musician give a fascinating glimpse of Roma life worldwide. Not rated.

Nomadic Beauty

A new exhibition shows a life-long fascination with gypsies.

By Yelena Shuster
Published: July 25, 2008

Behind a stark background of a dilapidated shack and bare trees stands a dark-skinned gypsy in a white wedding dress. Her gaze is defiant as one hand holds up the lace dress and the other hand rests boldly on her hips.

This contrast between the lovely and the wretched has immortalized photographer Lyalya Kuznetsova since 1979, when she first began capturing intimate moments in black and white all over Eurasia.

Since then, her documentary style has won her exhibitions and medals all over Europe and the United States. The current "Gypsies" exhibition at the Pobeda Gallery has collected 47 of her photographs over a 19-year period in order to introduce these classics to younger generations.

"Non-conformist Soviet photographers like Lyalya fell in a temporary pothole because of what was going on in the country at the time," said curator Irina Meglinskaya. "They are all legends, of course, but they don't exist in the mainstream. It was very important for me to connect this generation with the past one."

Known for their exotic dress and nomadic habits, gypsies have always been considered second-class citizens in Russian culture. Stereotypes include their practice of black magic and their penchant for pick-pocketing and stealing children.

Kuznetsova depicts their life on the outskirts of society with an intimacy rarely achieved by the presence of a camera. Her decision to capture the gypsy way of life was a personal one.

The year was 1977 and Kuznetsova's husband passed away. She quit her job as an aviation engineer and picked up a camera. Without any technical training, the Kazakhstan native dug into her childhood and began capturing the bright necklaces and skirt rustles of the gypsies around Oral, with whom she grew up.

"When things are awful, we reach for the roots that previously gave us strength. Photography became my way of expressing my sorrow," she said.

Though her mother warned her that gypsies kidnap children who misbehave, Kuznetsova was entranced by the gypsies who came to buy milk from her aunt's cow in a nearby village. Kuznetsova remembers watching the gypsies and their bright bonfires from atop the roof of her aunt's house.

"In my childhood, gypsies were always surrounded by this mystery. It was some kind of fairytale," Kuznetsova said. "With them was connected the smell of sagebrush, the smell of the steppe and the sound of bitter gypsy songs."

Kuznetsova began her photography career with a five-year-old daughter in her arms, and a major motif of the exhibit is a mother's love for her child. Whether depicting an elderly gypsy from Oral sitting on a pile of bedding behind a carriage with two girls by her side or a Turkmen grandmother snuggling with a child concealed in her veil, Kuznetsova portrays the resilience of these women without bordering on kitsch.

Kuznetsova considers all of her photography self-portraits. Though she is already a grandmother, her spirit is in that gypsy girl with the wedding dress, her gaze defiant amidst the damage that surrounds her.

For her next project, Kuznetsova plans to return to her beloved subject and photograph gypsies in the 21st century in Moscow's surrounding regions. Though she has been photographing gypsies for almost two decades, Kuznetsova has no idea what to expect.

"I cannot predict what happens when I click the camera," Kuznetsova said. "When I photograph, I don't think about the spectator. In fact, I don't think at all. I search for the photos where I feel a snag in my heart."

"Gypsies" (Tsygane) runs to Aug. 31 at Pobeda Gallery in Winzavod Center of Contemporary Arts, located at 1 4th Syromyatnichesky Pereulok, Bldg. 6. Metro Kurskaya. Tel. 917-4646.

Lolo Diklo : Roma Against Racism

Bookmark this blog - they (like myself) are trying to raise awareness about the Roma history, culture and worldwide racism.

http://www.lolodiklo.blogspot.com/

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Allie :)

Fire from Heaven

God in moving among the Roma Gypsy people of Serbia. The city of Leskovac has virtually become a centre for revival.

by Slobodan Krstevski

Many houses and buildings were burned during the NATO air campaign against Yugoslavia and people perished from the fiery bombs. But in Southern Serbia, in the central area of the Balkans, particularly in a city called Leskovac, a different fire has been burning within the hearts and souls of the Gypsy people. Like NATO’s fire, so this one came “from above,” but from much higher. This fire is from the throne of God and has been lighting the hearts of the despised community of Roma Gypsy people.


In Leskovac there are about 80,000 people of whom 10,000 are Gypsies. In the last ten years we don't know of any place in the Gypsy community that has not been influenced in some way by the Gypsy church. Many from the homes of Leskovac have attended the church at one time or another.

How it began

Originally some of these Gypsies attended a Serbian church in Leskovac pastored by Mio Stankovich. They responded to the love and hospitality of the people in the church.

Selim Alijevich, a young Gypsy boy who had became a Christian, was soon assisting pastor Mio as a volunteer custodian for the church. As he grew spiritually, he led some of the services and began to preach under Mio’s guidance.

Selim became the spiritual leader for the Gypsy people and the Gypsy believers were now able to have their own services. They experienced the miracles as people were healed. During subsequent years the church increased to 30, and then to 60.

In 1988 Selim honoured his service in the army and then continued on to England for theological training. Meanwhile Mio took direct oversight of the Gypsy church that had grown to 120 believers, including a newly formed music group.

In 1992 Selim was blessed with a wonderful helpmate and wife Gordana. They now have two children: Christian (1994) and Christina (1997). Upon his return to Serbia the same year, Selim preached, led worship and formed a new youth group. He also planned and implemented large open-air meetings, and meetings at the City Hall at special times like Christmas and Easter.

The open-air meetings in 1993 were usually held in a rented tent in an area that the Gypsy people were known to frequent. The people heard the preaching, singing and testimonies, and saw miracles of healing. One older man with a heart condition received prayer and was totally healed. The doctors in Belgrade exclaimed that it looked like God had done by-pass surgery.

Evangelistic teams and visitation programs were organized to visit people within the surrounding areas. Often 20 or more volunteer church members presented the Gospel using instrumental music, drama and songs, many of which were about healing.

Many of the Gypsies who have come to the Lord in this area of Serbia are from Muslim families and backgrounds. A local Muslim boy, Trail (Trajce) Bakich was healed. His dad Serif became a Christian and Trail started to share about his healing through music his father had composed.

By September 1998 the church had grown to about 300 people. A year later it numbered 500 with two services on Sundays. In January 2000 three services were held each Sunday with 700 in attendance. By July 2000, 800 were attending, and since April 2001 as many as 1,000 worship in a tent.

A new church

A few years ago the Gypsies wanted to have their own church property. They erected a collection box at the exit doors of the building. A sign on the box indicated in Yugoslavian and English that everyone should pray for, and give financially toward a new church building.

The results were astounding! Even though the Gypsy people are among the poorest of this country, they raised more than 5,000 DEM – almost $4,000 Canadian. This amount was added to a very generous donation by a group of Swiss people and Canadian Christians. Pastors Selim and Mio finalized negotiations on the purchase of a property.

It has been an interesting journey for Selim from the time he was a 15-year-old church caretaker, to becoming the caretaker and shepherd of this Gypsy church. I asked him, “What would you like to have God do in your life?”

“The miracles of God!” he answered. “To fulfill the purpose of God, so the city of Leskovac...will convert to a full knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That many in the [surrounding] cities, and the city itself, will be able to see what God is doing in the Gypsy church.”

I asked Selim what difficulties they have encountered so far. “The poverty of the church members. The many impoverished people that have no income whatsoever,” he responded. “It is hard to see them struggle and not be able to feed their children and families.”

Children at the garbage dump attempting to find something to eat or wear

I asked how we in Canada might help, or how we should pray. Selim said, “[For us] to have more strength and wisdom from the Lord.”

God answers prayer

The Gypsies are despised in many European communities including the Balkans and Serbia. As a result of being ostracized, they are quite shy as a community of people.

Interestingly, however, during the NATO bombings in 1999 Selim’s Gypsy church was invited to spearhead a demonstration of worship against these attacks. The Gypsy people prayed and fasted asking the Lord to spare the city. Even though Leskovac was supposed to be bombed, the city center itself was not bombed. God clearly had His hand of protection around these people. I believe God wanted His work of revival to continue among the Gypsies.

The church has also initiated many other works and outreaches. Twelve surrounding cities now hold meeting with up to 30 in attendance.

It has been a privilege for me to travel to Leskovac and minister there since 1993. Occasionally Craig Pitts, Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada (PAOC) Eurasia coordinator, has accompanied me resulting in great blessing for the people of Leskovac. I contribute through preaching, conducting marriage seminars, interpreting and occasionally helping with humanitarian aid for both the hungry Christians and the needy refugees that live in the area.

Selim is a man of God, and the people who submit to his leadership are very attentive to him. During the last three years that our outreach – Shining Light Ministries – has assisted with humanitarian aid, we were amazed at how well organized Selim’s church was. I have not met another group of Balkan people who were so well organized at distributing aid.

According to Mio, spiritually there is more “fire from heaven” to come. He says, “The Lord through His prophecies has promised wonderful things for the Gypsy church. One of the things is a new prayer house – a house for healing and miracles. God promised that in the next five years even the [most] godless person would fall on his or her knees and admit that God is alive. My vision is that we will open many new churches and mission stations, so that the Gypsy church will be a mother to them.”

Slobodan Krstevski is the founder of Shining Light Ministries based in Burlington, Ontario.

Originally published on the website, Shining Light Ministries.

Used with permission. Copyright © 2008 Christianity.ca.

Twilight Zone / The Gypsies of Jerusalem

By Gideon Levy

A filthy yard, pungent cooking smells wafting out of the shabby dwelling, snot-nosed children, a one-legged man wandering aimlessly, flies everywhere - this is a Gypsy home in the heart of the Old City of Jerusalem. It's the perfect setting for a Nissim Aloni play, but this is not "The Gypsies of Jaffa" by the renowned Israeli playwright. This home contains nothing of the mysterious, the romantic or the magical, no violin strings and no sorcery. It's just another rundown building in the Old City whose occupants, apart from one worker, are "Nawari," as the Gypsies of Jerusalem are called in Arabic.

There are 400 to 500 by one unofficial count, about 200 households by a different count, belonging to four clans - Sleem, Nimr, Shakr and Ba'rana. Until recently they married only within the community, but they have begun to open up to intermarrying with their Palestinian neighbors. Many are sanitation workers - this week one man rushed off to repair a blocked sewer drain; another was off to haul garbage for a municipal subcontractor.

Very little of the Gypsy cultural heritage has been preserved here, although one young woman is trying to salvage what she can. But she is shunned by the community, which is unwilling to accept activism on the part of a woman. We wandered for hours this week through the alleys of Bab al-Hutta, inside Herod's Gate, in search of the Gypsies of Jerusalem. Many people turned their backs on us, refusing to talk; others were stingy with their words, either largely ignorant of the Gypsies' fading identity or unwilling to divulge what they knew. In Cafe Karkour, a Nawar coffee shop adjacent to Herod's Gate, we asked a customer, a dignified-looking Palestinian named Taleb Ghit, whether he would let his daughter marry a Nawari. "No," he replied, "but I will not tell you why. There is a big difference between them and us. In ancient times they were nomads. They are not like us. But I do not want to insult them. I am forbidden to tell you what Nawar is, what Nawari is. I do not want to offend them."

Salame Shaker is a 50-year-old Gypsy who works for the municipal sanitation department. We met him in Bab al-Hutta, where he was born, though his family now lives in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Wadi Joz. Before 1967 most of the city's Gypsies lived in tents and lean-tos in Wadi Joz. During the Six-Day War many fled to Jordan, where they remained.

Shakr says community members of both sexes began marrying Palestinians three years ago. "We are more open-minded now," he says. One of his female relatives married a man from the distinguished Ja'abari family of Hebron, while another married into the Iskafi family, also from Hebron. He admits that "Nawari" still has pejorative connotations, like the word "Gypsy" in Europe, which has been replaced by "Roma" there. But there is no other word in Arabic for the community.

The association established by Amoun Sleem, the young woman activist, is The Domari Society of Gypsies in Israel (http://domarisociety.googlepages.com). "Dom" is the name of the community in its own, disappearing language, Domari. The language, an Indo-Aryan language closely related to Romany, Rajasthani and eastern Punjabi, originated in India.

What does it mean to be Nawar?

Shakr: "We are like anyone else. We are just a different family. The Palestinians came here at the time of wars in history; we were here before them. I have never felt different. Our food is the same as their food, we eat makluba and mansaf [traditional chicken and lamb dishes, respectively, of the Levant], just like the Palestinians. We do not have Gypsy music - our children listen to Arabic music - and we do not have [special] customs."

There is another Gypsy community in Gaza, whose women used to belly dance at family celebrations and whose men were wedding musicians. The Jerusalem Gypsies never danced. The first Intifada put an end to festivities in the Gaza Strip, and the Gypsies, who lived in lean-tos between Beit Lahia and Jabalya, apparently dispersed. The connection between the Jerusalem and Gaza communities has long since been severed, just like that between the Palestinians of the West Bank and of Gaza.

"I am 50 years old and have never been to Gaza," Shakr says. "The ties to the Gypsies in Jordan has also been lost. Those who are outside are outside and those who are inside are inside. I have cousins in Jordan. I went there and looked for them but did not find anyone. The old people have died and I could not find the young ones."

For 35 years the community was led by its mukhtar, Deeb Sleem, who worked as a scribe outside the East Jerusalem branch of the Interior Ministry, formulating requests. In the courtyard of the building in Bab al-Hutta, Shehadeh Nimr, a 43-year-old diabetic, hobbles around on his one leg. He too knows nothing about the community's cultural heritage or about his own ethnic identity. "I am Nawar," that's all.

"The Nawari are heroes," says Amar Ba'rana, his eyes lighting up with pride, as he sits in Cafe Karkour at midday. Not yet 28, he already has six children. "We marry young," he says - in his case, at 16. "I am not Nawar," he says in Hebrew, "I am Gypsy." Ba'rana's wife, Sharin Sleem, is also a Gypsy.

"Nawari is a name. I am a Muslim and my neighbor is a Muslim," he continues. "He is a human being and I am a human being. I read English and Hebrew, and I know where I come from - India - and there are Palestinians who do not know where they came from. The Gypsies of Jerusalem were here before everyone."

At the next table, Taleb Ghit describes his Gypsy neighbors: "They are people who live alone, a nation that lives alone. Who knows you? God and your neighbors. We, their neighbors, know them. They are refined, good people, but, you know, a group alone. Like the Bedouin, they do not let others come close."

Two Border Police officers, armed and in full gear from head to toe, sit on the stone steps leading to the cafe. No one inside has heard about the extermination of the Gypsies in the Holocaust. All they know is that the Gypsies of Europe are generous and donate to their small community.

The Gypsies of Europe, particularly in Finland, give to the Domari Society. Most of the Gypsies we met in the alleys of the Old City had nothing good to say about Sleem, its founding director. No one would help us to find her. Two days later we tracked her down in the small Gypsy center she runs in the north Jerusalem neighborhood of Shoafat, far from the wagging Gypsy tongues of the Old City.

Sleem, now in her thirties, seems to be a courageous woman who has decided to devote herself to preserving her community's heritage, in contravention of Gypsy expectations of a woman's role. She says most of her energies are focused on rescuing the unwritten language of the community, which only a few people can still speak. If nothing is done, she says, the language will become extinct within a decade, after the last of those who still speak are dead.

Sleem has devoted herself to the Domari Society for the past 12 years, working closely with the director of the Cyprus-based Dom Research Center, Dr. Allen Williams, with whom she has collaborated on two books on the subject. Next week she will be attending an international conference on Gypsies in Spain. Thrilled at the prospect, she says it will be the first time that Jerusalem's Gypsies will be represented in Europe. But more important to Sleem is that her community be accepted in Jerusalem as equals among equals.

Sleem's appearance does not disappoint: With her coal-black hair, giant hoop earrings, burning eyes and dark skin, she looks the Gypsy part. Visitors to the attractive apartment-turned-cultural center in Shoafat are welcomed by a receptionist from Poland. The place resembles an anthropoligical museum: photographs, traditional handcrafts, even a Gypsy cookbook published by Sleem. In it are recipes for lamb-filled pastries, date-filled cookies, a winter salad and potato salad. The cuisine is very similar to that of the Palestinians. Sleem says the Gypsies use more spices, with a nod to Indian food.

"I would like to be elected to the Palestinian parliament," says the Gypsy who is trying to raise her community's international visibility. Now she is working to create a dance company for Gypsy girls and to give crafts classes at the modest but impressive center that she established.

Coastside Film Society screens a fresh and vibrant musical surprise, Friday

Feature: The Crazy Stranger (Gadjo Dilo)
French and Romany with English subtitles

Tony Gatlif is a wonderful French/Roma (Gypsy) film maker. When the Film Society screened “Latcho Drom”, Gatlif’s documentary about the many styles of gypsy music in Jan 2007, the audience asked for more. This month they are going to give HMB more.

On June 20th The Film Society is screening one of Tony’s feature films about the Roma (Gypsy) life. Gadjo Dilo (The Crazy Stranger) follows a young Frenchman who finds himself living among Romanian gypsies. This plot about a stranger living among the Rom gives Gatlif the chance to explore the passions of Rom culture, music, and mores in a way that he could not do using the documentary format of Latcho Drom.

This story touches upon adult themes and the Rom actors are not afraid of using authentically salty language. So the Film Society was a little concerned about screening it at their usual venue at the Methodist Sanctuary. So they are moving this screening this month down the road to their our old haunt South of town at the Depot at Johnson House.

When: Friday June 20th at 8:00 pm
Where: The Depot at Johnson House, Half Moon Bay 110 Higgins Purisima Road
Donation: $6.00

“A fresh and vibrant surprise. A film that pulsates with consistent energy, humor and an unexpected pathos. There have not been many films that succeed in capturing the reality of the gypsy life, and Gadjo Dilo works beautifully. It’s a classic fish-out-of-water story which miraculously evolves into a boisterous, sometimes comic look at a particular Romanian tribe.” Paul Fischer Urban Cinefile

Director Tony Gatlif’s award-winning film about a young French man trying to come to terms with his father’s death. Searching for clues about his distant Dad he travels to Romania hoping to meet the reclusive Nora Luca, a legendary gypsy singer whose music was his father’s greatest obsession.

In hopes of tracking down the diva he ingratiates himself with the local Gypsy community. Initially suspicious of the stranger, the villagers gradually come to accept him. He, in turn, falls in love with beautiful, spirited gypsy dancer. The film’s complex story line weaves around the couple’s affair, revealing the rich world of gypsy custom and musical culture.

“The performances are all startling, from the superb work of French actor Romain Duris, the magnificent Isidor Serban, who is hypnotic as the elderly gypsy leader with a lust for life, and the seductive, earthy and foul-mouthed Rona Hartner who lights up the screen as the sensuous Sabrina. All in all, an exhilarating experience not to be missed.” Paul Fischer

* Winner of the Caesar Prize for Best Music for a Film *

For more info and a streaming video trailer see: www.HMBFilm.org

Warning: This film features adult themes and language

Lives of gipsy travellers celebrated by museum

A CELEBRATION of gipsy traveller heritage and culture is being held for one day only at the County Museum.

The special event, called "Gipsies - who are ya!"on Sunday has been put together by the Worcestershire County Council Museum Service and the Worcestershire Gypsy Roma and Traveller Partnership.

Visitors will be able to see one of the country's largest displays of gipsy caravans, meet wagon painters and restorers, watch musical entertainment, displays of dance and demonstrations of traditional crafts.

Sue Pope, the county council's education and outreach officer, said: "This is a really exciting event where we have opened our doors and embraced the wider community and partners to jointly organise something that celebrates the lives and achievements of Worcestershire's gipsy, Roma and travelling communities."

Sergeant Allie Webster, gipsy and traveller diversity adviser for West Mercia police, said: "By working together the force can learn more about the gipsy and traveller communities and can help promote wider tolerance and understanding within non-traveller communities.

The event will take place between 11am and 5pm. Normal admission prices to the museum apply. For more information e-mail Sue Pope at spope@worcestershire.gov.

advertisementuk or telephone the County Museum on 01299 250416.

Museum celebrates Gypsy heritage

A CELEBRATION of Gypsy traveller heritage and culture is set to take place at Worcestershire County Council's County Museum in Hartlebury next month.

The special event, on June 15, has been put together by the county museum service and the Worcestershire Gypsy Roma and Traveller Partnership, which includes representatives of West Mercia Constabulary, Rooftop Housing, the Community Housing Group, Worcestershire Diocese and the West Midlands Traveller Education Service, pupils from Stourport high and Birchen Coppice, Stourport and Hartlebury primary Schools.

Visitors to the County Museum will be able to see and do the following things as part of the Gypsies - Who Are Ya! event:

See one of the largest displays in the country of Gypsy Vardos, including the recently-restored Esmerelda - one of the finest wagons on display

Meet Mary Horner, author and editor of the Romany Road journal and history society

Stalls to promote the partner organisations

Dance and exhibition displays by pupils from Stourport High School

Displays and demonstrations of traditional crafts

Meet wagon painters and restorers to find out how it is done

Have a their family photograph taken with wagons

Musical entertainment

Sue Pope, the county council's education and outreach officer, said: "This is a really exciting event, where we have opened our doors and embraced the wider community and partners to jointly organise something that celebrates the lives and achievements of Worcestershire's Gypsy, Roma and travelling communities.

advertisement"We are looking forward to welcoming plenty of people to the forthcoming one-day event."

People wanting to find out more should call Sue Pope, on spope@worcestershire.gov.uk or call the County Museum, on 01299 250416.

There wil be admission costs.

12:17 pm Saturday 24th May 2008 - The Shuttle

The History and Culture of Gypsy Travellers - Landgate WI - April 25

The April meeting of Landgate W.I. started with president Jean Watson introducing this month's speaker Philip Godliman.

It was decided to open the meeting with his talk on 'The History and Culture of Gypsy Travellers'.

Member anticipated a very interesting talk and so it turned out to be. Mr Godliman retired from teaching in 1971 and having an interest in the life style of the gypsy travellers he joined the Kent Travellers Education Service which helps gypsy families ensure their children attend school as much as possible.

Most people have this some what romantic idea of gypsy life with fortune tellers and peg sellers being the stereo type. Others see them as traders and scrap dealers leaving a mess behind them wherever they stop.

The truth is that 90% of travellers are settled in houses now or at least on permanent sites.

The term gypsy covers a number of types - these included the circus and fairground people, barges on the canal boats and new age travellers.
The history of gypsies goes back to their emergence from India it's believed over 1,000 years ago. They moved across the world through Europe and North Africa.

They arrived in Britain 500 years ago and were entertainers in the Tudor court. However during the later part of the 16th century the persecution began which has carried on through the centuries and right into modern times.

Thousands were killed in the holocaust during the Second World War.
Because times have changed over the last 30 years or so the work that was done has now been lost.

Many spent the summer fruit and hop picking and making pegs and flowers in the winter time. The women would go round selling their goods door to door.

In 1968 the council Site Act came into force making it illegal to stop just anywhere so permanent sites were established and this enabled families to put caravans and mobiles homes on site.

Life may never be the same for future gypsy families but the urge to travel and the very strong sense of history will ensure the survival of the gypsy way of life.

This report is a shortened version of Mr Godliman's comprehensive talk as members were enthralled for over an hour.

June Humphries thanked him for being one of the most interesting speakers Landgate has had.

Roma reaching Roma Gypsies key for 10-million plus worldwide

BUZAU, Romania (BP)—Forfeiting a starting position on a professional soccer team didn’t make sense to the parents of Mihail Stoica, a talented young Roma Gypsy believer from the mountains near Buzau, Romania.

For the Roma—an ostracized, poverty-stricken people group dispersed throughout the world—Stoica’s chance to rise above his status was a rare opportunity too good to pass up. Yet, the influence of the professional sports lifestyle came at too great a cost to stay in the game.

In a squatter village near Medgidia, Romania, a group of Roma children play near the railroad tracks. A Roma Bible study meets each week in this village.
“I was playing soccer, my personal idol,” Stoica said. “I didn’t think it was a sin to play soccer, but then I realized the price that came with that. So I left playing soccer and just followed Jesus Christ.”

In the summer of 2006, Stoica obeyed God by joining eight other young believers from across Romania to travel to a foreign city to tell others about Jesus Christ. These growing disciples are the result of the International Mission Board’s most developed work with the Roma.

The result of Roma reaching Roma is a key hope for other Gypsy work that spans throughout Europe, Northern Africa and the Middle East and, more recently, into South America.

The Roma people made their way to Europe in the 14th century after being evicted from their native India. As early as the 1500s, many were removed from parts of Europe and relocated to South America.

Others traveled into parts of Northern Africa and the Middle East by force or by choice.

Through these staggered diasporas, the Roma have put down roots among people who despise them not only for their dark skin, but also for their poverty, illiteracy and poor living conditions.

Wherever their travels take them, Gypsies tend to adopt the local language and beliefs while still maintaining their own. The Romani language, strong family relationships and lifestyle characteristics unite the 10 million-plus Roma worldwide.

Best known for their wagons, fortune telling, colorful clothing and parties, the Roma are a proud, passionate people who fight against the loss of their culture and family circles.

IMB workers and national partners reach out through literacy education, teaching job skills and using Bible storying to evangelize and disciple new Roma believers.

Today, although this scattered people group may vary in dialect or location, IMB workers are able to minister along family and cultural lines to bring the Roma to Christ and train them to reach their own people—to have their own leaders and missionaries.

“When the Roma begin to do their own evangelism, they begin to cross barriers so quickly,” said Jim Whitley, an IMB worker who recently transferred from Romania to work in South America among the Roma. “A real indigenous church-planting movement. ... [T]hat’s the ultimate goal.”

Films 'to shatter myths' surrounding Gypsy and Traveller communities

Published by Jon Land for 24dash.com in Housing , Communities , Local Government on Monday 7th April 2008 - 9:26am

A unique set of films exploring views, myths and misconceptions about Gypsy and Traveller communities has been developed by four Regional Assemblies.

The films 'Somewhere to Live' were specially commissioned to support consultation on new Gypsy and Traveller caravan sites in the Regional Assembly areas covering East of England, South East, North West and West Midlands.

Each of the four Assemblies are updating their long term planning framework (Regional Spatial Strategy) to address Gypsy and Traveller needs, responding to concerns, that a shortage of permanent sites is increasing illegal camping.

It is the first time that Regional Assemblies across England have collaborated in this way, sharing costs and ideas to create an innovative approach to consultation. The films tackle controversial views upfront, giving an insight into both public perceptions and Gypsy and Traveller lifestyles.

East of England is the first region to launch its film as part of its public consultation which recommends 1,187 more Gypsy and Traveller caravan pitches by 2011.

East of England Regional Assembly Chairman Councillor John Reynolds said: "The film brings a human angle to the difficult and controversial issue of planning for Gypsies and Travellers.

"This is a unique way of informing the public, including hard to reach groups and facilitating engagement with council members, as Assemblies develop policy on addressing the shortage of legal stopping places for Gypsies and Travellers. It is important to improve access to services and facilities that most take for granted."

The films include region-specific views from members of the public, Gypsies, Travellers and their neighbours.

In addition, the films share interviews with Romany journalist Jake Bowers and Gypsy student Christina who explain myths, culture, public perceptions and the need for legal sites that give people access to education and healthcare.

The film has also been entered for a 2008 Royal Town Planning Institute award for Equality and Diversity.

Production of the film was managed by the South East England Regional Assembly and undertaken by production company @Voytek.

Choreography contest winner borrows from Gypsy culture

Nelly van Bommel walked away with the cash in March 2007 as the clear winner of the Milwaukee Ballet's Genesis Choreography Competition.

Now she's back to claim the other half of her prize: a commission for a new work, which the company will perform on a mixed-rep program Thursday through Sunday at the Pabst Theater.

"O Clemens," her prize-winning octet, was smart, buoyant and elegant, like its accompanying Vivaldi concerto and Pergolesi "Stabat Mater."

Van Bommel, who has her own modern Noa Dance Company in New York and never danced in a ballet troupe, made a dance that showed the dancers' balletic lines to advantage and for the most part kept them comfortably vertical.

The second time around, she would stretch the vocabulary more, but still respect the dancers' training and style.

"It's light, it's dancey," she said of her new work, during a break at the Milwaukee Ballet's Walker's Point studio. "This is a little wilder, I think, than last time, but still very much a piece for them. I probably wouldn't have made it for my dancers.

"The experience last year was good. I learned a lot about the process, and ways to make it more efficient."

Building from a base

Like many modern choreographers, van Bommel has a core of regulars. Their shared history and aesthetic turns dance-making into a collaborative give-and-take over extended periods of time.

Ballet dancers and ballet companies don't work that way.

"Usually, I don't start from the beginning," she said. "I start with a draft and move things around. That can be confusing to dancers. This year I tried to be more clear about that, so they know where we're going."

Van Bommel said some of her 12 dancers worked with her on "O Clemens," and that gave her a head start this year. Instead of standing around waiting for her to dictate steps, they're pitching in some, in the modern-dance way.

"It took a couple of weeks, but now I can take from what they give," she said. "It's like cooking. You take what they give, add spices and shake it up."

Seven Romanian Gypsy songs were their starting point.

The music reflects a long-standing interest in Eastern Europe in general and Gypsy culture in particular.

Van Bommel grew up in France and lived there until moving to New York in 2002. She had some contact with Roma people in France and on trips to the East.

The title of the piece is "Gelem Gelem," after the song a Gypsy congress that convened in London in 1978 adopted as a national anthem.

"Every year, a Gypsy camp formed in our neighborhood," she said. "My mother was a teacher, and sometimes the boys - always boys, never girls - would attend her classes for a month or two before they moved on."

Getting in the mood

In preparing for this piece, she listened to a lot of Roma music and looked at a lot of Roma dancing on video.

"There is this wonderful research tool, now - it's called YouTube," she said. "The girls shake their shoulders a lot. The guys have a lot of percussive footwork. And the movement is always driving down."

Some of that seeped into her new 30-minute ballet, but she does not intend to mount a stylized folk dance.

"I always wanted to use Gypsy music in a way that is not folky," she said. "It's more my fantasy about Gypsies and the Roma diaspora.

"I'm especially interested in the women. In traditional culture, they're subservient until they're married. Then they gain some prominence. I'm interested in how Gypsy women are portrayed in literature. Often, they're like Esmeralda, beautiful and strong. I wanted to explore that, and I have such a female character in the piece."

While the dance hints at characterization, it doesn't tell a story.

Van Bommel is more after the specific moods of the seven songs. Like most Roma tunes, they evoke either sentimental yearning or dancing and partying.

"I want to move between nostalgia and fiesta," the choreographer said.

The music's powerful rhythm posed the biggest challenge. The path of least resistance would be to simply move with the thrust of the beat, complicated and compound as it might be.

"I'm in love with this music," she said.

"It's fun, but it's more than fun. You can't just go with the music, you have to go away from it and come back again. I want the bodies to be strong, strong enough to compete with the music and resist it.

"But sometimes you can't help it, and you're carried away."

Travellers' tales

We need to know who our Gypsy pupils are...

Janette Owen
Tuesday March 11, 2008
The Guardian


In June, schools across the country will have the opportunity to take part in the first Gypsy, Roma and Traveller History Month, aimed at raising awareness and exploring the history, culture and languages of these communities. But the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) hopes that the themed lessons will have an additional impact.
According to the schools minister Lord Adonis, many Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils are among the lowest-achieving in our schools and the situation is not improving. Fear of prejudice and bullying has meant that many children and families are too scared to identify themselves, and without that knowledge schools are unable to apply for the extra support and funding that is available to help them.

The DCSF has produced a document, called The Inclusion of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Children and Young People, which aims to persuade schools and local authorities to stamp out prejudice and ensure that the children get the extra support they deserve.

What can governors do to boost this initiative? They need to support the head in identifying which families need help. The guide says: "Schools and local authorities cannot comply with their duties under the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000 unless they are aware of the ethnicity and cultural diversity of their school population."

It suggests schools try to recruit governors from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller backgrounds. Governors should devise strategies to encourage parents to volunteer, and not feel they lack the skills required.

The vulnerability of these pupils must be recognised in the school's behaviour and anti-bullying policies. According to the guide: "It is equally important for schools to have, within their anti-bullying policy, examples of racist terminology pertinent to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities."

Heads should provide governors with information on racist incidents at least annually and ideally once a term. Governing bodies are required to inform their local education authority annually of incidents.

Adonis says: "Children from Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities should feel safe and cherished in school, and therefore parents and pupils will be proud to identify themselves. Schools now have a duty to promote community cohesion, and this is a real issue for their attention."

The Inclusion of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Children and Young People can be downloaded from the online publications section of teachernet.gov.uk.
Education.governor@guardian.co.uk

Gogol Bordello founder blends his heritage, rock's energy

By BRIAN MCCOLLUM
Detroit Free Press

Teenage boy flees the Soviet Union, his gypsy family fearing fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Spends formative years in European refugee camps. Winds up in Vermont, U.S.A. Eventually gravitates to New York and forms a band that will become known as one of rock's hottest live acts, playing to increasingly adoring audiences around the world.

It's all so colorful and exotic it sounds like a fanciful short-story plot. But it's the real-life tale of Eugene Hutz, fountainhead of the band Gogol Bordello and an artist who's emerging as one of modern music's true renaissance men.

The charismatic Hutz and his compatriots call their music "gypsy-punk" - a flamboyant, mosh-ready style draped in the whirling sounds of Eastern European folk. As the Pogues did with Celtic styles two decades ago, so Gogol Bordello has done with Roma music, the band's accordions and fiddles leading the fiery sonic charge.

The group's records have started to garner attention - last year's "Super Taranta" landed on many critics' best-of lists - but it's the Gogol Bordello live show that seals the deal. The band's high-energy concerts have been hailed by both punk purists and world-music buffs for offering that most fundamental of musical pleasures: primal release.

History is filled with artists who have broken new ground by viewing a musical form from the outside, processing it through their unique filter and emphasizing traits the natives may have missed or taken for granted. The Beatles did it with American rock `n' roll, the British did it with the electric blues, and now Hutz just might be doing it with punk - spotting the cathartic energy it shares with the age-old folk music of his nomadic ancestors.

"There are not so many things that can provide that," says Hutz, speaking in the clipped but melodic accent that exposes his native Ukraine. "I have artists who were that release for me, so of course I want to reinvent that outlet in my own way, and to maximize it, actually. So there's a lot of merging of different cultures - cultures that rely strongly on that music as almost a drug to keep them high."

(MORE)

Villagers oppose gypsy site - and so do gypsies

FORCING travellers to live in isolated villages amounts to "social suicide", says a leader of the gypsy community.

More than 250 sites must be found in the region following a decision by the East of England Regional Assembly (EERA) on Friday - including some near small villages like Barkway in Hertfordshire.

Hughie Smith, president of the Gypsy Council (Romani Kris), said they had not been consulted and described the proposals as "forcing gypsies into areas where they do not want to be".

He said: "This is tantamount to social suicide, and a complete waste of time and public money.

"I am deeply concerned that no attempt has been made to consult with ourselves, or even to seek our input."

Paul Danter is the landlord of the Tally Ho pub in Barkway, and spokesman for the team of 12 villagers who scrutinised the controversial plans.

He said North Hertfordshire District Council (NHDC) and EERA would have no alternative but to review the methods they have used.

NHDC has been asked to provide 15 plots for travellers, and locations put forward in the Royston area include sites in Barkway and Sandon.

The group claims farmers who own the two 50-acre sites in Barkway have indicated they do not wish to sell, meaning - if they are chosen as the preferred options of NHDC - Compulsory Purchase Orders would be needed for the plans to go ahead against their wishes.

If the full allocation of plots was sited in the village, it would mean more than 50 travellers swelling its 600 population.

It has no doctor's surgery, shop, Post Office or bank and just a small infant school. The nearest GP is three miles away and the nearest hospital 12 miles away.

A report by Barkway resident Dr Robert Davidson states: "Proposing travellers' sites in a rural area like Barkway makes no sense.

"The village is far from the amenities and type of location that this minority group has requested and needs."

Campaigners also criticised the £40,000 Scott Wilson Report commissioned on the matter by NHDC, which included incorrrect locations and inaccurate descriptions.

Councillor F John Smith, leader of North Hertfordshire District Council, said it would not comment on individual sites until its consultation process has ended.

But he admitted: "Ours is one area which they don't want to be in, but we still have to carry on with the process as required by Her Majesty's Government. It doesn't mean we are doing it with joy in our hearts."

Royston's MP, Oliver Heald, has received scores of complaints from concerned residents and added it was "obviously wrong" to force travellers into areas where they do not wish to be.

In Cambridgeshire, 233 extra pitches must be created by 2011.

Councillor John Reynolds, EERA chairman and a member of Cambridgeshire County Council, said: "Traveller and gypsy organisations have been contacted about the overall plans from the EERA point of view, and are engaged in the consultation process."






Published: 31/01/2008 09:24:58

Gypsies shun violence, expert witness testifies in Lake Elsinore case

By TAMMY McCOY
The Press-Enterprise

Video: Expert testimony on the gypsy culture

A Gypsy being convicted of murder is uncommon because of the American Gypsy culture's distain for violence, an expert testified Friday in the penalty phase of a murder trial.

Anne Sutherland, a professor of anthropology at UC Riverside, testified that in her extensive study of American Gypsies she had not come across a murder case involving a Gypsy defendant before this one.

Sutherland testified Friday during the penalty phase of Tony Ricky Yonko's murder trial. Yonko, 45, a Gypsy, was convicted last month of murder for the October 2002 beating death of Paul Ngo, 41, inside his Lake Elsinore home during a burglary.

The jury must now decide if Yonko should receive life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death penalty.

Sutherland was hired by Yonko's defense team and testified about the Gypsy culture and the role it played in Yonko's life.

"They don't commit acts of violence. They consider that really prohibited," Sutherland said of her experience studying American Gypsies.

Defense attorney Elaine Johnson asked Sutherland how the Yonko family's criminal activities compared with other Gypsy families she has studied.

"It's higher," Sutherland replied. "They have more of their members in prison . . . than other families I've seen."

Gypsies avoid getting involved in mainstream American society, including the legal and educational systems, she said.

"Its one of the ways they have kept their culture together," Sutherland testified.

Gypsies trace their origins to northern India, Sutherland testified. From there they traveled into Eastern Europe. Their culture has developed around the idea of moving, she said, though it is unclear why.

Gypsies have been persecuted during their history. This, she said, plays a role in their desire to keep their culture a secret from outsiders.

Many came to the United States in the 19th century to avoid persecution in Europe.

In this case, since a man's death is involved, Yonko's younger brother expressed fears linked to another Gypsy belief. Caesar Yonko is worried that Ngo's spirit will come back and haunt the Yonko family, Sutherland said.

Prosecutor Stephen Gallon questioned her about Yonko's parents teaching him when he was about 6 to scam, steal and burglarize the homes of non-Gypsies.

"Yes, it's a kind of moral boundary," she said. "(You can) scam people who are non-Gypsies, but when it comes to violence that's not the case."

Gallon contends that on the day of the murder, Yonko planned to steal from the Ngo home and likely talked his way inside by posing as a prospective tenant. A 'for rent' sign stood outside the Ngo home.

Gallon has said that Ngo was probably beaten to death inside his home while Yonko was trying to steal form him.

In Friday's testimony, one of Yonko's younger brothers testified that he and his siblings were taught to talk their way into the home's of non-Gypsies and steal things for the benefit of the entire Yonko family.

"Is it viewed in the Gypsy culture as OK to steal from non-Gypsies," Gallon asked.

"Yes, it is," Teddy Yonko, 40, replied.

"Isn't it true that your family is very good at stealing from other people?" Gallon asked.

"Yes. . . . Its part of our life . . . that's like a tradition," Teddy Yonko testified.

Teddy Yonko is in prison serving the remainder of a 13-year prison term for a residential burglary conviction in 1996. He and Tony Yonko posed as exterminators to get inside the home of a 90-year-old woman, Teddy Yonko testified.

They stole $500 from her, Teddy Yonko said.

"So you invade the homes of innocent people for money?" Gallon asked.

"Yes, I'm sorry," Teddy Yonko replied.

They never harmed or threatened the elderly woman, Teddy Yonko said.

The trial resumes Tuesday at the Southwest Justice Center in French Valley.

Gypsies fight back to beat Guardia Civil

By: thinkSPAIN

A team of Gypsies from the Anakerando Kaló Association in Lepe (Huelva) had to work hard after trailing for most of the game, but finished the stronger to take the honours with a 6-4 final victory against a team from the local Guardia Civil barracks.

The match was one of the most-eagerly awaited of a series of actvities organised in the town this week to promote cultural integration, and drew a large enthusiastic crowd.

Other activities have included: a conference on Gypsy culture followed by a poem recital, and a presentation by a group of Gypsy children on the importance of education and not bunking off school.

In addition, the Romani flag was hoisted over the Town Hall to a rendition of the Gypsy anthem.


Tuesday, November 27, 2007