Auschwitz Sign

So last night, some really sick sons of bitches vandalized Auschwitz, a sacred site to millions of the dead and the living, by stealing the sign from the gate.

"Work makes one free" was the meaning of the words written in German. The sign stood above the heads of those prisoners being marched in and out every day for slave labor in factories and construction sites. It gave a hint of a promise that if you worked hard enough, you may someday be free.

So last night, between 3 and 5am, some jerks stole it. They carried the sign to a waiting getaway truck and took off. The act is deplorable. No amount of damage done to the campsite can erase what happened there. Even if the camp itself were to burn down, it would still be the site of genocide and murder, pain and torment, torture and experimentations. You can try to blot out the stain the Nazis and their citizen collaborators made against mankind, but you can never erase it. The Nazis and those Germans who did not stand up against Hitler must live with the fact that they have blood on their hands.

May the Lord weaken the hearts of these sick assholes and allow the sign to be found and bring them to justice.

Insurance, the President, and Gypsies

I never thought these things would have something in common, but low and behold, they do! President Obama stated that he didn't want the American people to get 'gyped' by insurance companies. Yes, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize said that.

I've heard the phrase 'sticks and stones' before, and there are activists out there who claim that words only hurt if we let them. The problem is, words DO hurt, especially when they are being spoken by one of the most powerful men in the world.

You need words to declare war, you need words to talk peace. You need words to spread the word of God and you need words to spread the message of hate. Words uplift and commend and they knock down and destroy. Everyday we are judged on our ability to use words. Judgement calls are made, all based on words.

And then there is that word that we can't seem to get rid of. The stigma of "Gypsy". To the outsider, the word means 'thief', 'con-artist', and 'vagrant'. Few outsiders know what it really means, and the past few days have been interesting watching people discover the origin of the word and who we really are.

The problem with words is that they tend to stick in people's minds. I just read a blog on a website stating that the gays and lesbians are feeling 'gyped' by Obama. Words, when spoken by people of authority, carry even more weight and the abilty to do more damage than the same word spoken by the average man.

So, the President used the phrase 'gyped'. I was waiting for 'so lets Jew 'em down!' to follow. I was stunned. I had hopes, I really did, that perhaps somewhere in the world someone would begin to see. Madonna stepped up to the plate and the world took notice for awhile. Now the President himself has taken the bat in hand. This could actually be a good thing.

Yes, I said a good thing. We are beginning to come together, even stronger than ever. There are hundreds of blogs out there about Obama's statement, some good and some bad, but they are out there. People are talking. And we are writing.

The world is starting to see us. They have to. We need to use the momentum that is happening around us to make the world a better place for us and for our children, and even for the outsiders. Step forward and take a stand. Write the President at WhiteHouse.gov. Write you local congressman, senator, and the editors to your paper. It doesn't have to be a flowery speech worthy of publication, just add your voice to those around you. The world needs to see that even though we are separated around the globe, we are united in voice.

Someone once told me "you need to find your voice. Look inside. And when you do find it, start screaming until someone takes notice." So, my friends, start screaming.

An upcoming project: The Porjamos

I will be beginning a new project over Christmas break and that is to write a paper on the Romani Holocaust, the events that lead up to its creation, and the effects it still has on the Romani today.

Few people know of the fate of the "other victims" of the Holocaust. How can they? History text books often list the "other victims" inside parenthesis. It usually looks something like this: 'six million Jews, along with other victims (Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, homosexuals, and Gypsies), were murdered by the Nazis during the war.'

Alas, this method of labeling marginalizes these "other victims" even further. The Nazis fought more than a two front war. They fought several wars on many fronts.The racial war the Nazis made on the world included Jews and Gypsies. The war against the spiritual world included the Jehovah's Witnesses, Catholics, and any religion that spoke out against the Nazi party. The moral war they waged was against the homosexuals, and the war on the 'mental' home front took out both ends of the spectrum: the mentally handicapped and the intellectuals who dared to speak their minds. These people are all dead, and those who were marginalized by history no less dead and were no less human beings than the Jews. Life is life, regardless of who is living that life.

The Roma are currently being fingerprinted and photographed in Italy. The last time this happened, two million Gypsies were sent to the gas chambers. Now Italy has stated that they do not intend a racial war against the Roma, that they are only trying to deter crime. If the government really wants to deter crime, then they must fingerprint and photograph ALL of their citizens. It is a racist action to target one race based on stereotypes.

Unless one sees this evil for the true evil it is, to recognize its features and opinions, one will not be able to speak out against it when it happens again. Genocide has happened since World War II and will happen again unless we, as world citizens, watch for it and take action.

Divorce Court

I can't say it only happens to Gypsies. It happens everytime there is a disaster and national television shows up to interview someone who witnessed the event. The well dressed newscaster will never seem to be able to find anyone around who looks even semi-normal. He finds the large woman wearing a frumpy house dress and fuzzy animal print robe. She hasn't taken the curlers out of her hair yet, even though it is four in the afternoon. She is wearing makeup, however, usually a gaudy red lipstick and powder blue eyeshadow so she looks like the scary woman on The Drew Carey Show. She may or may not have her teeth in. This seems to be optional for being on national television. She will explain in her own interesting fashion how the incident occured, showing off her linguistic skills and sharpened vocabualry.

This is the important thing to remember. She is not a representative of that entire population. See, she is the one gawking and squawking while there is work to be done. She has opted to go before the camera instead of working to clean up, fix the problem, or do something, anything, that seems helpful. She is looking for her 15 minutes.

The couple that appeared on Divorce Court today, "Gypsy and Honey", are like that woman. They do not represent me or any other Romani I know. I don't know any Romani who were taught to steal as a child, who would discuss such matters on camera, or who would even take such matters to a gadji court.

Whatever motivated them to go on screen and say what they said only disgraced themselves, entertained a people who already think all Gypsies are this arrogant and stupid, and set relations with the gadji back even further.

Any member of any race or religion can be a criminal, a cheat, and a liar. You can't judge an entire race based on a few people you have seen or a few stories you have read. To do so is racist.

Please learn more of what it really means to be Romani. Learn the history, the traditions, the customs. You may be surprised to discover that what you think you "know" as truth is actually a stereotypical myth.

Don't let Gypsy and Honey lead you the wrong way to see what wonderful people the Romani really are.

The word "Gypsy"

In the next few days I will explain the history of the Romani, or "Gypsies". But lets start with 'Romani 101'.

Our first lessson: The word Gypsy.

The word 'Gypsy' is a shortened form of the word "Egyptian". When the Romani first entered Europe, they discovered the need for an explanation of their appearance. THe Crusades were in progress and many people saw the dark skinned new-comers dressed in exotic attire as spies of the Muslims. The Romani often claimed they came from a place called 'Little Egypt' and used stories with a biblical ring to them to satisfy their host countries and to protect themselves.

The word soon came to have a different meaning. As Europe began to mistrust the 'Gypsies', claiming they brought the Plague and other diseases, the word became associated, as it is today, with thieves, vagabonds, and other dregs of society.

The word is considered by many Romani as a racial slur, while other Romani don't care which word you use, as long as it is used in respect. To promote strength and positive association, I prefer the word Romani, even though I use "Gypsy" in the title of this blog. The reason is simple. Few people even know the word "Roma" or "Romani" even exist. For the sake of those who don't know, I use the word "Gypsy" in the title.