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Culture, community and enterprise in a Hungarian Romany settlementDeans, Fran Margaret Morag January 2004 (has links)
This thesis is designed to further our understanding of Hungarian-speaking Romany (Romungro) culture and, in the context of the post-communist transformation of Hungarian society and economy, to comment on how the values of the Romany community conflict with those of an NGO, the Dignity Foundation, working in the field of Romany community development. This thesis will contribute to a hitherto neglected aspect of the Hungarian Romany experience by providing an ethnography of Hungarian-speaking Roma. The thesis examines meanings of the terms Cigany (Gypsy), testver (extended family) and zsivany (crooked) behaviour in the context of the everyday life of a rural settlement. From enjoying near full employment under state socialism, the Roma in Hungary now find themselves in a situation that sociologists have presented as one of underclass formation. Evidence of entrepreneurial activity presented in the thesis questions the suggestion that all rural Romany groups are forming a post-communist underclass. The significantly increased role of the civil sector in issues of welfare is one of the most prominent features of the post-communist transformation and this thesis examines some of the consequences of this change. Drawing on the Dignity Foundation's experiences in this community, the thesis comments on the chasm between the values of the NGO and those of the community, in particular their different perceptions of trust and the significance that this has for the effectiveness of projects designed, in part, to encourage local-level civil society. The thesis suggests that local values must be respected by NGOs and others working with Roma for there to be effective dialogue.
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A comparative study of communist and post-communist policy formation and implementation : case study of Roma policy in Czechoslovakia and Slovakia 1945-1998Hergottova, Irena January 2008 (has links)
Post-war Czechoslovakia experienced the development of a range of dedicated policies towards Roma. Communist governments' efforts culminated in the 1950s and 1960s with accommodation transfers, integration into the workforce and school admissions positive action projects. After the Prague Spring in 1968, these policies, often referred to as ''forced assimilation", were considerably reduced but efforts to integrate Roma into socialist welfare continued until 1989. One of the perceived weaknesses of the communist policies towards Roma was the failure to consult with indigenous Roma communities and recognise Roma as a national minority, despite calls for such a move from the Roma leadership during the Prague Spring. Democratic processes attached to the 1989 Velvet Revolution widened opportunities for resolving the historical grievances by offering a chance for Roma to form their own groups and for new political parties to pay more regard to international human rights frameworks. Despite the hopes offered by democratisation, this thesis offers evidence that due to frequent changes of government, ambiguous policy objectives inherited from the past, and insufficient knowledge of equal opportunities policies, particularly the absence of the new notion of social justice, little was achieved after 1989. This thesis contributes to the knowledge of policy formation and implementation from a historical perspective and across two political systems. It firstly challenges certain notions of the role of communist parties in the policy process that remain empirically under-researched. Secondly, it provides an opportunity to explore unrecognized links between ambiguous notions of Roma constructed within social science and approaches put forward by the governments over time. This thesis argues that the continuous lack of understanding of who Roma communities were and how they perceived themselves represented the two major factors of the weak implementation of policy in Czechoslovakia and Slovakia between 1945 and 1998.
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The impact of discourses of authenticity on the development and application of statutory definitions of gypsies and travellers : a study of their legal access to accommodation in England and Wales since 1959Ruston, Simon Mark January 2013 (has links)
The research investigates the impact of discourses of authenticity on the development and application of statutory definitions of Gypsies and Travellers in England and Wales since 1959, and the subsequent consequences for access to accommodation for these communities. These definitions are concerned with land use, equalities, housing, and homelessness legislation. The basis of these definitions is found in statute and policy and decision makers ranging from local authorities through to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) are responsible for their development and application. Each of these definitions has different consequences with regard to access to accommodation. The research examines a chronological analytical narrative of the development and application of these definitions over a 53 year period, which consists of an examination of relevant case law, policy, law and other useful sources. Interviews with key informants involved in the development and application of statutory definitions serve to reinforce the interpretation of the evidence. The evidence is assessed using the notions of discourses of authenticity, which are constructed as the discourse regarding the authenticity of an individual or group as Gypsies or Travellers as prescribed by other individuals, groups or institutions and the implications of this ascription. There has not been a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between the discourse around the authenticity of Gypsies and Travellers and statutory definitions in modern times. This research bridges the gap in the existing literature by undertaking a comprehensive analysis of the development, application and consequences of statutory definitions in the light of the existing knowledge on discourses of authenticity with regard to Gypsies and Travellers.
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Fire in the dark : telling gypsiness in North East EnglandBuckler, Elizabeth Sarah January 2003 (has links)
Taking as a starting point the interactions of people from different cultural backgrounds (Gypsies and non-Gypsies) this thesis examines the participants' different ways of being in the world and what this means for their ability to communicate and plan effectively together. Split into three sections the thesis uses an organising metaphor of a fire burning in the darkness in a wasteland. The first section - the Wasteland - situates the work in relation to a number of theoretical frames; Gypsy studies, anthropological work on identity and ethnicity, notions of intersubjectivity developed by phenomenologists and recent work examining the role of tropes in anthropology and understandings of culture. This section also gives the work a methodological frame looking especially at the nature of the fieldwork experience and the ethical issues involved in representing people. Finally this section locates the work in a geo-historical context, the place and space of Teesside, North East England. The second section - the Fire - examines the role of stories in teaching a sense of Gypsiness. Looking specifically at the stories Gypsies tell and their relationship to ideas and experiences of `family' the ethnographic thrust of this section is to develop a clear sense of the social aesthetic standards in operation in Gypsy story telling. This is then extended to show how such social aesthetic standards remain in operation in the everyday actions and interactions of Gypsies. Illuminating these social aesthetic standards gives a clear point from which to start comparing Gypsy styles of interaction with those of the non-Gypsy world. The third and final section - the Dark - places the ethnography of the previous section in the wider context of the non-Gypsy world. This then provides the grounds from which to conduct a detailed examination and comparison of the different styles of interaction at work when Gypsies and non-Gypsies come together. Some conclusions are drawn as to the significance of understanding different styles of being in the world and the implications such understandings have for guiding planning and policy work. The thesis finishes with a suggestion of the significance of the work and conclusions drawn as regards anthropology in general.
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The reconstruction of Roma identityCarr, Helen January 2003 (has links)
No description available.
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The rise of written literature among the Roma : a study of the role of writing in the current re-definition of Romani identity with specific reference to the Italian caseToninato, Paola January 2004 (has links)
So far, textual hetero-representations of the Romani people (usually called `Gypsies' by the non-Roma) have focused on their foreignness and alleged `non-conformity' to the dominant order. Such depictions, conflating history and myth, art and reality, promote the perception of an unbridgeable divide between the `primitive', `illiterate' Roma and the `civilized' society. In this respect, the forging of a fictional `Gypsy' identity can be seen as an ethnic strategy aimed at endorsing harsh policies of oppression and social marginalization of the Roma. The recent rise of *a Romani written literature has shown that, contrary to common belief, the Roma cannot simply be defined as people `without writing'. This thesis aims to highlight the complex features of their literature, characterized by an irreducible plurality of voices and styles which is in striking contrast with the rigid, monolithic structure of the conventional images of the 'Gypsy'. The intertextual, hybrid features of Romani literature seem to suggest alternative ways of looking at Romani identity which substantially undermine the rigid binarism of ethnocentric definitions of the 'Gypsy'. More specifically, the study of Romani literature enables us to view Romani textual hetero- and auto-representations not as irreconcilable, mutually exclusive terms, but in the light of their interconnections and mutual influences. The adoption of a dynamic, intercultural approach is a crucial factor in our understanding of the complex features of Romani identity, and may ultimately contribute to a profound (and long due) reassessment of the troubled Roma/Gağe relationship.
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