Excerpts

Houses

If while driving over the Most Gazela, one casts a glance at the settlement which lies under it, a chaos of plastic sheets, car tires, bricks and rugs meets the eye. These objects are, however, not strewn about arbitrarily, but serve as a covering for the roof construction of the houses which provide shelter for approximately 800 individuals. The similarity of their improvised construction in that they are all one-story dwellings consisting of one or two rooms gives, at first sight, the impression of a relatively unified whole.

In actuality, however, there is a striking difference: the older part …

Population Groups

After immediate and extended families, which represent the most significant social units in the settlement, the factors of affiliation with one of the various population groups and the time one moved to the settlement play an important role which lead to marked social differences. Thus the inhabitants of the older part of the settlement are often …

Local Supplies

There are several possibilities inside the settlement for grocery shopping. A handful of stores have fruit, vegetables, sausage, bread, flour, sugar, sweets, soft drinks, coffee, alcohol and cigarettes, although the inhabitants complain about the poor quality coupled with the high prices. Packaged goods are around two-thirds more expensive, sometimes even twice as much as in the stores and at the markets outside of the settlement. Despite the enormous price differences…

Culture

Although the Gadže definitely appreciate individual elements of Roma culture, their life style has always been seen as being in discord with European culture. As a result Roma have been subject to measures which have aimed at either assimilating them, displacing them by force, or even annihilating them; and this has led to the Roma having withdrawn into a parallel society. Although they have taken on many of the cultural elements of those countries in which they have settled…

Prejudices and Their Consequences

In Serbia Roma are considered to be lazy, dumb, dirty, foul-smelling, primitive, ugly, crooked, deceitful, fraudulent, libidinous, thieving, and lacking in both character and culture. Furthermore, it is a widespread belief that they are happy and satisfied with such miserable living conditions because it suits their nature. In situations in which apartments have been provided for them, they have been accused of over-occupying them, not using the toilets, dismantling the fixtures, removing the windows, using the parquet flooring for fuel and building campfires in the living room. Such stories are used as proof that Roma…

Practical Information from A to Z

Most of the children in Gazela love to be photographed, striking up a pose as soon as they see a camera and demanding loudly “Slika, slika!” (Photo, Photo!) so that you will photograph them. In general, however, people should only be photographed with their permission. Since few of the inhabitants have the possibility…