džulory ladžala

mytsunami:

Dear gadje,
I love you. I know sometimes we fight and we don’t often see eye to eye but I still love you. Mostly. Sometimes. Okay you’re like the stepchild that I feel obligated to love but I give you the dollar store toys on xmas and your bday… but still.. we’ve got somethin’. Anywho I’m writting to inform you that I don’t like that you don’t know what ROMA or Romani is. I feel that I’m forced to call myself gyspy and I’m not so sure I like that.
You ask me what Roma is. I explain.
You look confused. You ask if I’m romanian.
I want to punch you but I remain calm.
I try to better explain. You look confused.
I say gypsy. Now you understand.
Now I want to punch you even more.
Do you see where I’m going with this? Your lack of cultural awareness means I have to use a racial slur to describe myself. So consider this an I still kinda love you/formal request to get your act together. Also gadje anthropologist professor… I’ma need you to learn wtf Romani is. If I have to explan it to you I will drop your class because I will have lost all faith in both you and your PH.D. Dicks.
Sorry about calling you a dick btw. Kinda.
Anyway.
I hope all is well. Tell your mum I said hi.
Love always (sometimes)
A Roma woman

whooda-thunkit:

I would imagine that most Rroma have had the request, often unmistakable from a demand, to “dress like a ‘Gypsy’” on Halloween.  Probably you have been invited to some idiot’s party to tell fortunes. I guess they heard that guys do not traditionally dukker (I think that is what it is called) so I get it too.

After enough (the early 80’s), I had the first incarnation of my “gypsy costume” made.  It is a simple black tshirt with “this IS my ‘gypsy’ costume, I AM a ‘gypsy’” on the front and, on the back, “Call us Rroma.”  The latest version has a circular Rromani flag under “Please call us Rroma.”

Every year I am badgered with the demand request I wear this tshirt, jeans, boots, and sometimes a leather vest.  Other than wearing a regular tshirt instead of my “gypsy costume” tshirt, this has pretty much been my default outfit since the 80’s.

When this is met with objection, which it always is, I say that I am a “gypsy” who is wearing jeans, boots, and a tshirt.  Furthermore, I always “look like a ‘gypsy’” because I AM one.  I could be in a suit and tie, sweatpants, or pink tutu with a flowerpot on my head, and I would still “look like a ‘gypsy.’”

Occasionally I will agree to go to their parties and agree to “tell fortunes.”   I am there for a brief time and am not invited back again which suits me just fine.  Here is what I do:

I take the first person’s palm in mine, squint at it, run my finger over it, and give them the most amazing line of bullcrap imaginable.  I am good enough at telling a tale to get them quite interested in whatever malarkey I am reciting.  Then I poke my finger into the middle of it, look into their eyes, and say “and THERE is where it says you are a moron for believing that I can read palms because I am Rromani Gypsy.”  (Here is why I say “Rromani Gypsy”: http://proudromani.blogspot.com/2010/03/why-i-say-i-am-rromani-gypsy-funny.html

This frees me from these invites in any community until I move again, at which time I repeat the performance.

At least every couple of years, however, I am asked by someone to “dress like a Gypsy”, so my tshirt has undergone many incarnations and slight changes.

By now I am rarely asked this other than at work.  So… I wear this tshirt under my scrubs.

When I am not dealing with idiots like this, my costume is a straightjacket over hospital scrubs.

Haha~! Phrala, you’re awesome!!!! I don’t know why people think we’re going to dress like a gypsy just for them!!!! But, that is such a good answer!! I’d love to see that shirt.

I really want a Romani Flag t-shirt. I might have to design a line of them for cafe press or something with Roma sayings on them or something.

That would be awesome. And then we can ALL dress like gypsies…!!!

whooda-thunkit:

I have been told that I speak and write like a white person. 

That is insulting as hell because of the insinuation that Rroma cannot be articulate and educated and, if we try, we are “trying to be white.”  I have had that one too: since I am educated and articulate, I am “trying to be white.”  However, the assholishness can, and is, sometimes taken a step further:

I shall provide you an example.  I am only including bits of this thread.  This fellow decided to tear into my people ending it with saying that I am obviously not really Rroma because I own a computer or I own a computer because I stole it.  I called him on his prejudice to which he replied, and I quote:

“No, I think you misunderstood. I was saying that because most Roma ARE all those things, I don’t believe you could be one of them. Your English is very good and you seem rather well educated. I was making a comparison between the typical Roma and yourself. It was supposed to be a compliment. The final remark about the PC was a sarcastic joke… And we Brits do love the occasional sarcastic “coup de grace”, you should know.”

A few snippets of mine:

“I rarely get into debates about my people anymore because I have done so for long that I am weary of it. I have come to be a pretty good judge of whether or not the debate will be productive and the level of venom you show indicates that this is going to be an exercise in futility.”

<snip>

“You state that your comment was a compliment based on me not being like the rest of my people. I can understand why you consider this to be a compliment, however, would you appreciate me complimenting you by vilely insulting the rest of white people?”

I addressed some of his specific points and told him:

“I do not know if my comment is going to spark a rant. If it does, I will ignore it. If you discuss calmly with me I might further the communication.”

He chose to not continue the conversation and has avoided me ever since.

For the record, my unwillingness to put up with argumentative racists is why I do not have “ask” on.

Oh gosh, I hate this argument.

I am constantly told that I am not a Roma and could never be because I am in a graduate program—and all Roma are ignorant and uneducated.

This is quite clearly not the case since I am Roma and I have fought tooth and nail to get to this point.  Not only that but,

As bell hooks stated in her book “Talking Back”

this is the oppressor’s language, yet I need to talk to you

We have no choice but to “speak and act white” if we want to be heard—and even then it’s a struggle. Every moment I spend in graduate school is a moment I feel I am losing my self to the standards that white people are holding me to. It doesn’t matter that my ENTIRE family was denied an education, it doesn’t MATTER that I am the first to even graduate high school. No, I must perform whiteness at the same level as everyone else.

Because I am in graduate school.

I was actually told that if I could not cope with this task I should leave. 

It makes me SO ANGRY. 

I can be Roma AND intelligent. Being one does not preclude the other.

my-journey-my-thoughts:

This has been brewing for a while…

Racism is what made my mother hide who I really am from me. She kept my Chicanere heritage from me, because she looked at “gypsies” with disdain.

Because of “positive stereotypes”, my mother was ASHAMED of me. Petrified of my finding out.

Because of negative stereotypes, she was disgusted by me.

I grew up without any knowledge of who I was, because I was less human to my adoptive mother.

All because you want to flounce around in fucking flowy skirts and act like little hippie fucks.

I don’t know why you can’t see what you do does hurt, and it is fucking disrespectful. Maybe you just don’t care, or maybe you’re just that ignorant. Whatever the case, I’m just sick of you.

I grew up in the tradition. I knew we were gypsies, even though no one sat me down and said “Honey, you’re a gypsy”. I grew up in Europe where most people HATE us. 

My mother, however, didn’t want me to be one. She spat ‘dirty gyppo’ at me whenever she had a chance, cut my hair, sent me to private school…

She wouldn’t tell me her heritage, nor my grandparents. I would try and pry it from them—but her mother, with her steely eyes and whiplash tongue only taught me how to cook. They refused to tell me anything—it’s only since growing up that I’ve found out who I am.

My grandma even said “It’s not all about bloody long skirts and horses you know!” because, I guess, I looked the part and loved the horses.

So, even though we’ve had different experiences, in some respects they are the same. Having your heritage kept from you is… it fucking hurts. Being dehumanized because of stereotypes, fucking hurts.

chaje-shukarije:

Brace yourselves.

mytsunami:

Today I saw what I can only describe as hippsters dressed in “gypsy” costumes. On campus. Sigh.
At first I was gobsmacked and mortified… for maybe 15 seconds.
And then it happed.
I couldn’t stop it… I laughed. And pointed. And then laughed somemore. I thought I was going to wet myself.
And yes. I absolutely pointed whilst having a laughing fit.
Of course this caused a scene. I don’t think at first they realized I was laughing at them. They looked around grinning like idiots until they realized I was pointing at them.
I confirmed it with a “Yeah you. The ones digracing my people by wearing trinkets, mismatched skirts and diklos. You all look like complete twats and I’d spit on you if it weren’t good luck.”
I saw one of the girls a minute ago and she had taken off the diklo, changed her top to a plain tank top and looked much less like a twat.
Ay devla. Gadje you might actually be killing me but atleast I got a good laugh from your ignorance.

haha, this made my day~!!

:D

Gadže… džatar! me kamav voj te džaltar!  me xoljajlem! aj, bul’aška…. dil’i, dil’i gadže.

-sigh- gadže den ma xoli sajek džes. 

Numa von pučhen, “so godo čerdan?”

Majmunka—džav čhere!!

lisipuska:

golden-zephyr:

helloimlulu:

Just a quick bitch. It bothers me tremendously that Gogol Bordello has popularized the word “Gypsy.” They have non Rromani kids screaming “GYPSY PUNK!” at every turn and seem to be doing little to educate anyone on the history of that word?

If Eugene Hutz, who identifies as Rroma, wants to use that word..thats his choice. I say Gypsy and often refer to myself as a Gypsy in conversations with gadze because its tiring not to, sometimes. 

I am wondering what are some of you guys (Rroma and gadze) opinions about this?

Should Gogol Bordello, as a band, stop using the word? Should they try to educate others on the history of the word and explain why gadze fans should think twice before using it?

Yeah, after hearing him explain it, I felt better with it. I suppose their idea was to alter the perception of the word—the fact that Rroma can be (and are) successful and modern and stuff…

But, the more I see the people who idolize him…. I don’t know. I mean some of his songs try and and explain things, but I’m not sure people get it. I think the songs are just … nice sounding words, they don’t mean anything…

I think even he has been romanticized and sometimes I think he’s sold out just a little bit. Like you say, where is his activism and education of the gadže? 

One of my friends here loves him and has met him… but she still used the word “gypsy” ALL the time until I explained things to her…

So, obviously, he’s not doing a great job…

Being Gadje, I can’t say how the music speaks to Roma - I have no idea of that. However, a lot of their fans are immigrants - first or second generation, many from eastern Europe, South America, etc. I strongly identify with the songs, because they sound like everything I listened to growing up.

Slavic music mixed with Latin and Italian. A mish-mash of languages spoken. Speaking of living poorly (by monetary standards), etc.

I think she does romanticise Roma a bit, but growing up in Ukraine, they are romaniticised. I was actually confused, because in America Roma are really romanticised, and I didn’t realise they were in former USSR too (not sure if right now, but before - yes).

Even websites I may visit that are Russian and are out to explain the “facts” just say a bunch of bullshit about how “Gypsies prefer not to wear shoes” and “Gypsies, being so loved, were allowed to roam freely across Russia, unlike everyone else”.

If someone grew up in the USSR, like my family, these thoughts, ideas, and very different perception of the world is really hard to shake off.

So to me, even if Hütz is trying very hard to get the word out, to say what Gypsies really are, he still has some of this mindset, even if he doesn’t realise, doesn’t want it, that is there. THe other musicians in the band aren’t Roma - they’re immigrants. I think this also immediately skews the image and message. Westerners/Americans look at this “Gypsy” band and see multi-coloured people (which is wonderful, by the way), and think “Yes, this is Gypsy. Americans, Ukrainians, Chinese, Israelis, etc, playing together and roaming the world freely”.

I don’t think his music really gets the message out - if you don’t listen to it right, or don’t already have a slight understanding of who Roma are and their ongoing situation. But his interviews are nice. He usually does talk a bit about it, his family, etc.

I don’t even know what I wrote - just, uh, sort through it, sorry, haha.

Reblogging for commentary

helloimlulu:

Just a quick bitch. It bothers me tremendously that Gogol Bordello has popularized the word “Gypsy.” They have non Rromani kids screaming “GYPSY PUNK!” at every turn and seem to be doing little to educate anyone on the history of that word?

If Eugene Hutz, who identifies as Rroma, wants to use that word..thats his choice. I say Gypsy and often refer to myself as a Gypsy in conversations with gadze because its tiring not to, sometimes. 

I am wondering what are some of you guys (Rroma and gadze) opinions about this?

Should Gogol Bordello, as a band, stop using the word? Should they try to educate others on the history of the word and explain why gadze fans should think twice before using it?

Yeah, after hearing him explain it, I felt better with it. I suppose their idea was to alter the perception of the word—the fact that Rroma can be (and are) successful and modern and stuff…

But, the more I see the people who idolize him…. I don’t know. I mean some of his songs try and and explain things, but I’m not sure people get it. I think the songs are just … nice sounding words, they don’t mean anything…

I think even he has been romanticized and sometimes I think he’s sold out just a little bit. Like you say, where is his activism and education of the gadže? 

One of my friends here loves him and has met him… but she still used the word “gypsy” ALL the time until I explained things to her…

So, obviously, he’s not doing a great job…

diaryofadocumentaryfilmmaker:

Every crime I have witnessed was committed by gaje, the majority of all the crimes I have watched on the television or read about in the news were committed by gaje. Yet do I believe that every gaje is a criminal? That every gaje should be bullied and discriminated against; ‘Arrested’ for having been born?

No I do not. Every human being is an individual.

How dare you say that every Romani, Traveller and ‘Gypsy’ is a criminal, that they shouldn’t be allowed to live because you once read in the news that ‘they’ cannot be trusted?

Don’t form your opinions on prejudice and ‘mockumentaries’. 

^ this, one thousand times this.

(Source: diaryofaromanifilmmaker)