This bibliography was produced by the Open Society Institute's Forced Migration Projects (FMP), which ceased operating in 1999.
Roma and Forced Migration
An Annotated Bibliography, Second Edition
Presently, there are between seven and eight and a half million Roma living in Europe. From their arrival on the European continent in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, the Roma have faced mistrust, rejection, and exclusion. In 1504, Louis XII forbade the Roma from entering France; in 1496, the German parliament declared the Roma traitors to Christianity; and from the fifteenth century until as late as 1864, the Roma lived as slaves in Romania. However, the ultimate act of aggression and violence against the Roma came with the Holocaust of the Second World War, in which between 270,000 and 500,000 Roma were murdered.Despite a legacy of mistreatment, the political changes in Eastern Europe in 1989 brought a new optimism to the Romany community. One scholar described it as a “new Roma awakening,” with a flurry of new social, political, and cultural organizations emerging to provide choices to the Romany community for the first time in their history in Eastern Europe. However, the political changes have also awakened a new wave of anti-Romany sentiment and violence. The rise in violence has been noted in nearly every country with a significant Romany population. Many Roma are left wondering if they were better off under the previous regimes.
Deteriorating conditions for the Roma in Eastern Europe have prompted many Roma, especially those from Romania, Bulgaria, and the former Yugoslavia, to seek settlement in Western Europe. These causes include discrimination in housing, unemployment, and the threat of violence. The movement of these people is considered by some experts to be only the beginning of a vast migration of the Roma westward. One leading expert on the Roma suggests that it could rival the last great movement of Roma that took place at the end of the 19th century, when slavery was outlawed in Romania. Discrimination and violent attacks by civilians and police in countries such as Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, and the former Yugoslavia provide an element of coercion and influence the decisions of many Roma to migrate to Western Europe. Clearly, the problems within Romany communities are a pan-European problem, with transnational implications and a need for regional approaches.
Because of the precarious situation of the Roma in Europe and the potential for migration, we published our first edition of the annotated bibliography on the Roma and forced migration in March 1997. The response to the bibliography was gratifying. Requests for the publication were prolific, as were suggestions for additional entries. As a result of this response as well as the continued mistreatment of the Roma, we have produced this second edition.
We sought to incorporate suggestions from readers of the first bibliography, as well as continue to provide information to facilitate a better understanding of the issues surrounding the Roma and forced migration. While much of the bibliography remains the same, substantial changes have been made. The section on the Roma and the Holocaust, for example, has been greatly expanded. David M. Crowe, professor of history at Elon College and author of numerous books and articles on the Roma, compiled additions to the new volume. updating many of the old entries in the process. His assistance on this project is gratefully acknowledged. The editorial assistance of Elizabeth S. Archangeli, an intern with the Forced Migration Projects, is also acknowledged.
Like the first edition, this annotated bibliography assembles texts directly concerned with the forced migration of the Roma, as well as other books, articles, periodicals, and various collections which provide background information on the Roma and their socio-economic, political and legal experience. The bibliography is organized by region and country for easier usage. Most of the books can be found at any large research library in the United States.
Arthur C. Helton
Director, Forced Migration Projects
May 1998
Next