Early this month, the Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) published a new report titled “A persisting concern: anti-Gypsyism as a barrier to Roma inclusion”.
The study finds that “despite ambitious initiatives, the fundamental rights situation of Roma in the European Union (EU) remains profoundly troubling. The persisting phenomenon of anti-Gypsyism has proven to be a barrier to efforts to improve the life chances and living standards for Roma.”
The report uses mainly data from two previous studies, the Roma pilot survey of 2011 and the Second European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU-MIDIS II) of 2016. This data has then been analysed with a specific focus on anti-Gypsyism. The report provides an overview of available indicators of key elements of anti-Gypsyism, such as discrimination, harassment and hate crime against Roma. It also takes a deeper look at the situation of Roma in five key areas, which are education, employment, poverty, healthcare as well as housing and finds that severe discrimination is taking place in all areas of Roma people’s lives.
FRA has formulated 24 recommendations (called opinions) and calls for a Roma inclusion strategy which includes “bold and effective measures acknowledging and combating anti-Gypsyism.” This publication comes at a very timely moment, as discussions about the post 2020 Roma strategy will start soon.
Eurodiaconia has put together guidelines on anti-Gypsyism. In the context of the discussions on the post 2020 Roma strategy we will also continue to highlight the necessity of combating anti-Gypsyism, as necessary condition for successful inclusion of Roma in our societies.
To know more about the report “A persisting concern: Anti-Gypsyism as a barrier to Roma inclusion”, check FRA website.
Have a look at the Eurodiaconia Guidelines on anti-Gypsyism.