Editing Romani Holocaust (section)

== Recognition and remembrance ==
{{see also|Genocide recognition politics|Holocaust denial}}
[[File:Berlin Sinta and Roma memorial 2014-2.jpg|thumb|[[Memorial to the Sinti and Roma Victims of National Socialism|Memorial to the Sinti and Roma Victims of the Nazis]] in Berlin, Germany]]
The German government paid [[war reparations]] to Jewish survivors of the Holocaust, but not to the Romani. There were "never any consultations at Nuremberg or any other international conference as to whether the Sinti and Roma were entitled like the Jews to reparations."<ref>{{cite book |last=Wippermann |first=Wolfgang |year=2006 |chapter=Compensation withheld: The denial of reparations to the Sinti and Roma |editor-last=Kenrick |editor-first=Donald |title=The Gypsies during the Second World War – 3 The Final Chapter |publisher=[[University of Hertfordshire Press]] |pages=171–177 |isbn=978-1-902806-49-5 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2QYIOjkEEdAC&pg=PA171}}</ref> The Interior Ministry of Wuerttemberg argued that "Gypsies [were] persecuted under the Nazis not for any racial reason but because of an asocial and criminal record".{{sfn|Gilbert|1989|p=734}} When on trial for his leadership of Einsatzgruppen in the USSR, [[Otto Ohlendorf]] cited the massacres of Roma people during the [[Thirty Years' War]] as a historical precedent.{{sfn|Gilbert|1989|p=735}}

The [[European Roma Rights Centre]] in 2017 gave more details of the chronology of recognition and reparations:

{{Blockquote | After World War II Roma were also excluded from the right to restitution, because Federal German authorities denied that Roma were persecued due to racist reasons. After a small step in this direction in 1963, restitutions became possible in small amounts only in 1979, when the West German Federal Parliament declared that the Nazi persecution of Roma was based on [[racism|racial grounds]] and Roma survivors were allowed to claim for restitution in a form of a onetime payment. The official acceptance of the Porajmos as genocide by the Federal Republic of Germany followed only in 1982 with a speech by Chancelor Helmut Schmidt. In August 2016, an agreement between the German Ministry for Finance and the Foreign Ministry of the Czech Republic decided on compensation for survivors of the Porajmos in the Czech Republic. This agreement, which will give 2,500 EUR to each of the handful of survivors, was greeted as a symbolic acknowledgment, but also criticised for its delay and the low amount awarded. However, this agreement has already led to renewed claims from Romani victims from the former Yugoslavia and other regions of 'romocide'.<ref>[http://www.errc.org/uploads/upload_en/file/roma-rights-journal-1-2017.pdf ''Roma and Conflict: Understanding the Impact of War and Political Violence''] pp. 42–43, 2017, European Roma Rights Centre</ref> }}

In the historiography of East Germany (GDR), the persecution of Sinti and Roma under National Socialism was largely taboo. The German historian Anne-Kathleen Tillack-Graf states that in the GDR, Sinti and Roma were not mentioned as concentration camp prisoners during the official commemorations of the liberation at the three national memorial sites [[Buchenwald concentration camp|Buchenwald]], [[Sachsenhausen concentration camp|Sachsenhausen]], and [[Ravensbrück concentration camp|Ravensbrück]], just like [[Persecution of homosexuals in Nazi Germany|homosexuals]], [[Persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Nazi Germany|Jehovah's Witnesses]] and [[Black triangle (badge)|asocial detainees]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Tillack-Graf |first=Anne-Kathleen |title=Erinnerungspolitik der DDR. Dargestellt an der Berichterstattung der Tageszeitung "Neues Deutschland" über die Nationalen Mahn- und Gedenkstätten Buchenwald, Ravensbrück und Sachsenhausen |trans-title=The GDR's memory policy. Illustrated by the daily newspaper "Neues Deutschland"'s reporting on the national memorial sites Buchenwald, Ravensbrück and Sachsenhausen |publisher=Peter Lang |year=2012 |isbn=978-3-631-63678-7 |location=Frankfurt am Main |pages=3, 90 |language=de}}</ref> West Germany recognised the genocide of the Roma in 1982,<ref>{{cite book |last=Barany |first=Zoltan D. |year=2002 |title=The East European gypsies: regime change, marginality, and ethnopolitics |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |pages=265–266 |isbn=978-0-521-00910-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yTylND961ZMC&q=Herzog}}</ref> and since then the Porajmos has been increasingly recognized as a genocide committed simultaneously with the Shoah.<ref>{{cite book |last=Duna |first=William A. |date=1985 |title=Gypsies: A Persecuted Race |publisher=Duna Studios |url=http://chgs.umn.edu/histories/victims/romaSinti/gypsies.html |via=[[Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies]], [[University of Minnesota]] |access-date=8 November 2015 |archive-date=11 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081011151409/http://www.chgs.umn.edu/histories/victims/romaSinti/gypsies.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> The American historian Sybil Milton wrote several articles arguing that the Porajmos deserved recognition as part of the Holocaust.<ref>{{harvnb|Milton|1992|}}; {{harvnb|Milton|2009|}}.</ref> In Switzerland, a committee of experts investigated the policy of the Swiss government during the Porajmos.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.thata.ch/romasintijenische.pdf |title=Roma, Sinti und Jenische. Schweizerische Zigeunerpolitik zur Zeit des Nationalsozialismus |language=de |trans-title=Roma, Sinti and Jenische. Swiss Gypsy-politics at the time of National Socialism |website=thata.ch }}</ref>

Nico Fortuna, a sociologist and Roma activist, explained the distinction between Jewish collective memory of the Holocaust and the Roma experience:
{{Blockquote|There is a difference between the Jewish and Roma deportees&nbsp;... The Jews were shocked and can remember the year, date and time it happened. The Roma shrugged it off. They said, "Of course I was deported. I'm Roma; these things happen to a Roma." The Roma mentality is different from the Jewish mentality. For example, a Roma came to me and asked, "Why do you care so much about these deportations? Your family was not deported." I went, "I care as a Roma" and the guy said back, "I do not care because my family were brave, proud Roma that were not deported."<br />

For the Jews it was total and everyone knew this—from bankers to pawnbrokers. For the Roma it was selective and not comprehensive. The Roma were only exterminated in a few parts of Europe such as Poland, the Netherlands, Germany and France. In Romania and much of the Balkans, only nomadic Roma and social outcast Roma were deported. This matters and influences the Roma mentality.<ref name=Ben_Judah>{{cite journal |last=Judah |first=Ben |title=Invisible Roma |journal=Moment Magazine |issue=July–August 2011 |url=http://www.momentmag.com/invisible-roma/ |access-date=30 June 2011}}</ref>}}

Ian Hancock has also observed a reluctance among Roma to acknowledge their victimization by the Third Reich. The Roma "are traditionally not disposed to keeping alive the terrible memories from their history—nostalgia is a luxury for others".<ref name=Symi_Rom-Rymer>{{cite journal |last=Rom-Rymer |first=Symi |title=Roma in the Holocaust |journal=Moment Magazine |issue=July–August 2011 |url=http://www.momentmag.com/roma-in-the-holocaust/ |access-date=30 June 2011 }}</ref> The effects of the illiteracy, the lack of social institutions, and the rampant discrimination faced by Roma in Europe today have produced a people who, according to Fortuna, lack a "national consciousness&nbsp;... and historical memory of the Holocaust because there is no Roma elite."<ref name=Ben_Judah />

=== Acts of commemoration ===
[[File:Roms Sinti persecutions plaque.jpg|thumb|upright|Plaque in [[Rome]], Italy, in memory of Romani people murdered in extermination camps]]
[[File:Roma Road Holocaust By Bullets.webm|thumb|upright|''Holocaust by bullet'', [http://www.yahadinunum.org/ Yahad-In Unum] documentary]]

The first memorial which commemorates victims of the Romani Holocaust was erected on 8 May 1956, in the Polish village of [[Szczurowa]] commemorating the [[Szczurowa massacre]]. Since 1996, a Gypsy Caravan Memorial has been traveling among the main remembrance sites in Poland, from [[Tarnów]] via Auschwitz, Szczurowa and [[Borzęcin, Lesser Poland Voivodeship|Borzęcin Dolny]], gathering the Romani and well-wishers in the remembrance of the Porajmos.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Porajmos in Roma Memory in Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland |url=http://www.geschichtswerkstatt-europa.org/expired-project-details/items/porajmos.html |website=Geschichtswerkstatt-europa |publisher=eVZ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716212852/http://www.geschichtswerkstatt-europa.org/expired-project-details/items/porajmos.html |archive-date=16 July 2011}}</ref> Several museums dedicate a part of their permanent exhibition to documenting that history, such as the [[Museum of Romani Culture]] in Czech Republic and the Ethnographic Museum in Tarnów in Poland. Some political organisations have tried to block the installation of Romani memorials near former concentration camps, as shown by the debate over [[Concentration camps Lety and Hodonin|Lety and Hodonin]] in the Czech Republic.

On 23 October 2007, President [[Traian Băsescu]] publicly apologized for his nation's role in the Porajmos, the first time a Romanian leader has done so. He called for the Porajmos to be taught in schools, stating that, "We must tell our children that six decades ago children like them were sent by the Romanian state to die of hunger and cold". Part of his apology was expressed in the Romani language. Băsescu awarded three Porajmos survivors with an Order for Faithful Services.<ref>{{cite web |title=Romanian Leader Apologizes to Gypsies |url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-10-23-1767691328_x.htm |website=[[USA Today]] |date=23 October 2007 }}</ref> Before recognizing Romania's role in the Porajmos, Traian Băsescu was widely quoted after an incident on 19 May 2007, in which he insulted a journalist by calling her a "stinky gypsy". The president subsequently apologized.<ref>{{cite web |title=Violence against Roma: Romania |publisher=[[Human Rights First]] |url=http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/discrimination/reports.aspx?s=roma-and-sinti&p=individual |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091111094803/http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/discrimination/reports.aspx?s=roma-and-sinti&p=individual |archive-date=11 November 2009}}</ref>

[[File:Monument to the Memory of the Holocaust of the Romani (Gypsies), Borzęcin village, Brzesko County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland.JPG|thumb|upright|Monument to the Memory of the Holocaust of the Romani (Gypsies) in the site of German Nazi crimes during WWII, in the Polish village of [[Borzęcin, Lesser Poland Voivodeship|Borzęcin]] ]]
On 27 January 2011, [[Zoni Weisz]] became the first Roma guest of honour at Germany's official [[Holocaust Memorial Day]] ceremony. Dutch-born Weisz escaped death during a Nazi round-up when a policeman allowed him to escape. Nazi injustices against the Roma were recalled at the ceremony, including that directed at Sinto boxer [[Johann Trollmann]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Evans |first=Stephen |date=27 January 2011 |title=Roma appeal against discrimination on Holocaust Day |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-12295614 |website=BBC News |access-date=27 January 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=27 January 2011 |title=German President makes historic speech at Auschwitz |publisher=Deutsche Welle |url=http://www.dw.com/en/german-president-makes-historic-speech-at-auschwitz/a-14798859 |access-date=27 January 2011}}</ref>

In July 2011, the [[Polish Parliament]] passed a resolution for the official recognition of 2 August as a day of commemoration of the genocide.<ref name="Poland">{{cite web|url=http://www.osce.org/odihr/81364|title=OSCE human rights chief welcomes declaration of official Roma genocide remembrance day in Poland|publisher=OSCE|date=29 July 2011|access-date=7 May 2017}}</ref>

On 5 May 2012, the world premiere of the ''Requiem for Auschwitz,'' by composer Roger Moreno Rathgeb, was performed at the [[Nieuwe Kerk (Amsterdam)|Nieuwe Kerk]] in Amsterdam by The Roma and Sinti Philharmoniker directed by Riccardo M Sahiti. The Philharmoniker is a pan-European orchestra of Roma and Sinto musicians generally employed by other classical orchestras; it is focused on the contribution of Roma culture to classical music. Dutch-Swiss Sinto Moreno Rathgeb wrote his requiem for all victims of Auschwitz and Nazi terror. The occasion of the premiere was coupled to a conference, ''Roma between Past and Future.'' The requiem has since been performed in [[Tilburg]], Prague, [[Budapest]], Frankfurt, [[Kraków]], and [[Berlin]].

On 24 October 2012, the [[Memorial to the Sinti and Roma Victims of National Socialism]] was unveiled in Berlin.<ref>{{cite web |title=Roma Genocide Remembrance Initiative |publisher=ternYpe – International Roma Youth Network |url=http://2august.eu/the-roma-genocide/16-may-romani-resistence-day/ |access-date=8 March 2015 |archive-date=19 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150519000236/http://2august.eu/the-roma-genocide/16-may-romani-resistence-day/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Since 2010, ternYpe – International Roma Youth Network has organized a commemoration week called "Dikh he na bister" (look and don't forget) about 2 August in Kraków and Auschwitz-Birkenau. In 2014 they organised the largest Youth Commemoration Ceremony in history, attracting more than 1000 young Roma and non-Roma from 25 countries. This initiative of ternYpe Network was held under the European Parliament's High Patronage granted by President Martin Schulz.<ref>{{cite web |title=Patronage of the European Parliament for "Dik I Na Bistar – Look & Don't Forget |publisher=European Parliament |url=http://2august.eu/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/patronage-ep-slider.jpg |access-date=8 March 2015 |archive-date=3 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303230851/http://2august.eu/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/patronage-ep-slider.jpg |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== In popular culture ===
*In the 2011 documentary film, ''[[A People Uncounted]]: The Untold Story of the Roma'', filmmaker Aaron Yeger chronicles the rich, yet difficult [[history of the Romani people]], from ancient times to the Romani genocide which was perpetrated by the Nazis during WWII, and then, it chronicles the history of the Romani people from the end of World War II to the present day. Romani Holocaust survivors share their raw, authentic stories of life in the concentration camps, providing first-hand accounts of this minority group's experience, a subject which the public does not know about.
*In 2009, [[Tony Gatlif]], a French Romani film director, directed the film ''[[Korkoro]]'', which portrays the Romani Taloche's escape from the Nazis, with help from a French notary, Justes, and his difficulty in trying to lead a sedentary life.<ref>{{cite web |last= Nyiri |first=Mary |year=2010 |title=It's Only a Movie: Film Review of Kokoro (Freedom) |url=http://www.kinocritics.com/article.php?ar=364 |website=KinoCritics.com }}</ref> The film's other main character, Mademoiselle Lise Lundi, is inspired by [[Yvette Lundy]], a teacher who worked in [[Gionges]] and was active in the [[French Resistance]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Yvette Lundy, inspire un film à Tony Gatlif |date=8 April 2012 |website=France 3 Champagne-Ardenne |publisher=[[France Télévisions]] |language=fr |url=http://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/champagne-ardenne/info/yvette-lundy-inspire-un-film-a-tony-gatlif-72133304.html |access-date=8 November 2015 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304065334/http://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/champagne-ardenne/info/yvette-lundy-inspire-un-film-a-tony-gatlif-72133304.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>
*The 1988 Polish film, ''[[And the Violins Stopped Playing]],'' also has the Porajmos as its subject. It was criticized for showing the killing of Roma as a method of removing witnesses of the [[The Holocaust in Poland|killing of Jews]].{{sfn|Hancock|2010|p=256}}
*A scene in the French-language film ''[[Train of Life|Train de Vie (Train of Life)]]'', directed by [[Radu Mihaileanu]], depicts a group of Romani singing and dancing with Jews at a stop en route to a concentration camp.
*In the graphic [[X-Men]] novel ''[[Magneto (Marvel Comics)|The Magneto Testament]]'', [[Max Eisenhardt]], who would later become Magneto, has a crush on a Romani girl who is named Magda. He later meets her again in Auschwitz, where she is in the Gypsy Camp and together, they plan their escape. The Porajmos is described in detail.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://comicstore.marvel.com/X-Men-Magneto-Testament/comics-series/1606|title=X-Men: Magneto – Testament Digital Comics – Marvel Comics|website=comicstore.marvel.com|access-date=2016-05-03|archive-date=8 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200508214950/https://comicstore.marvel.com/X-Men-Magneto-Testament/comics-series/1606|url-status=dead}}</ref>
*In 2019, Roz Mortimer directed ''[[The Deathless Woman]]'', a 'hybrid-documentary' film which is both a ghost story and a record of first person testimonies about historical crimes which were committed against the Roma during WWII (and contemporary crimes). The ghostly narrator, voiced in Romani by Iveta Kokyová, questions the absence of her history in archives and museums.<ref>{{Citation |last=Mortimer |first=Roz |title=The Deathless Woman |date=6 October 2019 |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11051880/ |type=Documentary |publisher=Wonderdog Productions (II) |access-date=2022-04-14}}</ref>

=== Literature ===
Several survivors of the Romani holocaust wrote about their experiences. They include: [[Philomena Franz]], [[Otto Rosenberg (writer and activist)|Otto Rosenberg]], [[Ceija Stojka]], [[Walter Winter]], [[Alfred Lessing]], and others.<ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Stojka |first=Ceija |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uaKKEAAAQBAJ&dq=philomena+franz&pg=PA2 |title=The Memoirs of Ceija Stojka, Child Survivor of the Romani Holocaust |date=2022 |publisher=Boydell & Brewer |isbn=978-1-64014-121-6 |pages=2 |language=en}}</ref> The first of these works appeared in the 1980s as silence over the impact of the holocaust on Romani communities began to be discussed.<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last1=French |first1=Lorely |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=867lEAAAQBAJ&dq=philomena+franz&pg=PA147 |title=Approaches to a "new" World Literature: Romani Literature(s) as (re-)writing and self-empowerment |last2=Hertrampf |first2=Marina Ortrud M. |date=2023-11-20 |publisher=Akademische Verlagsgemeinschaft München AVM |isbn=978-3-95477-157-8 |pages=147–148 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Baer |first1=Elizabeth Roberts |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fvz2EKI7CPYC&dq=philomena+franz&pg=PA69 |title=Experience and Expression: Women, the Nazis, and the Holocaust |last2=Goldenberg |first2=Myrna |date=2003 |publisher=Wayne State University Press |isbn=978-0-8143-3063-0 |pages=53–54 |language=en}}</ref>