BBC Radio Shetland

Meet the Roma

11/07/2011

BBC Radio Scotland - Meet the Roma

What do we really know about the Roma? Shelley Jofre finds out.

They look different, they act different, they get a bad press. But what do we really know about the Roma? Shelley Jofre finds out.

Since the expansion of the EU we've all noticed a number of migrant workers arriving in our communities in Scotland. Amongst them are an ethnic group called the Roma, previously known as gypsies. They've caught our attention because unlike other migrants from Eastern Europe, they look noticeably different. The press have suggested they cause trouble by begging, hanging around in large groups on street corners, being associated with noise disturbance, litter dumping and even serious crime. But who are the people behind the headlines? What's their story?

Panorama's Shelley Jofre wants to find out for herself. Meeting EU Roma migrants, asking them about the lives they left behind in Eastern Europe, and how they are making a new start in Scotland. In Edinburgh she meets up with several Roma people who sell The Big Issue. Struggling to make ends meet, they say their lives here are so much better than the conditions they faced in Romania, and have great hopes for the future with their children now attending Scottish schools. Anne Mackenzie at Edinburgh's Big Issue office, explains why they decided to sell the magazine to Roma migrants. 

In Glasgow's Govanhill, the local Roma are mainly from Slovakia. Shelley meets Marcela, who is a health worker. She came to Scotland a few years ago with her boyfriend. Now she's decided to stay and develop her skills through university study. 18 year old David invites Shelley to meet his family at their home. The whole family love traditional Roma music and singing, and David hopes with the help of the Princes Trust he can work towards setting up his own music business.

As Shelley gets to know ordinary families who happen to be Roma, she considers whether they deserve a little less suspicion and a bit more friendship. As community police officer Stevie Scott says, " the Roma, well, they're a lot like the Scots.".

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