rroja & ribbons

Thank you!! 

“Romani” pronunciation in English kind of depends on where you’re from. 

In the US, it’s roh-mah-nee. In the UK, and other places, it’s roh-muh-nee. 

“Roma” is always just roh-mah. 

Wooooo!!! Congratulations, anon! 

Because they technically are.. they are part of our diaspora, but sort of broke away into their own distinct communities & prefer their own ethnonyms over “Roma”. 

It’s actually not an uncommon thing in our diaspora. We see Spanish Cale self-identify as “Gitanos” who call their language “Calo” instead of “Romanes”, Sinti Roma prefer “Sinti”, Roma in Armenia refer to themselves as “Lom” / “Loma” etc.. 

Ohhh.. then no, not okay lol 

Yes an no. 

Indo-aryan was never supposed to be an ethnic or racial classification; it was and is an umbrella term for certain languages. It refers to languages that have a mixture of Sanskrit derived dialects & languages found in Persia [Iran]. 

The concept of it being in any way related to race came from someone named Max Muller, who misinterpreted the Sanskrit derived “Aryan”, which referred to Iranians and then misapplied it to Germanic and Scandinavian peoples of Europe. 

Anyway, we are not Indo-aryan in a racial sense. The term was never meant to refer to race & was hijacked by nationalists and ethnocentrists starting in the late 1800s. 

My heart goes out to anyone who deals with that as a chronic condition because it was one of the most painful things I have ever experienced in my life. 

I legit thought my aneurysm ruptured and that I was going to die. Luckily, that wasn’t the case, but that shit was excruciating. 

They also found that one of my kidneys is enlarged, but it could be from the pancreatitis. I get kidney function tests done regularly & they’ve been okay, so we’re hoping it was just an acute thing. 

There were no signs of infection, so I got to go home early this morning. 

I have to go to my primary doc on Monday to get my enzymes rechecked, and then we’ll go from there. 

But like, why does my body hate me so much???

When I get the time, I can make a whole post about it!

I have grown up in a rich Romani family, the only misinformation I see is people trying to degrade our cultural diversity and beliefs.

Uhm, what??

Your post was literally a giant mess of uninformative words strung together. 

Calling our religion “shamanism”, “magic”, and “pagan” is somehow not degrading our cultural diversity and beliefs? It’s not only flat out wrong, but plays into stereotypes non-Roma have about us.. which are certainly degrading. 

Please don’t try to use “diversity” as a way to excuse blatant misinformation. We have diverse beliefs, but literally none of them are anything remotely like Shamanism or Paganism. Also, diversity doesn’t change the grammar rules of our language; “the Rom” can never refer to a plurality in Romanes, but sure.. diversity. 

Someone who grew up in “a rich Romani family” would know what is and is not a part of our culture. I can understand getting historical things wrong if you didn’t bother to look them up, but I cannot quite begin to imagine how someone who is supposedly Romani would be unaware that something is a giant freaking stereotype and incorrect. 

Oh, we definitely care.. 

I think what bothers me more than the their particular race, is that there are so many talented Romani actors and actresses out there who are overlooked simply because they don’t fit this contrived “Gypsy aesthetic” most non-Roma believe. 

It’s also interesting that a lot of issues that are considered to be a big deal in SJW circles don’t seem to matter much when it pertains to Romani people. If a White person played some of South Asian or Middle Eastern descent, it would be viewed as brown face, but not when it pertains to us? 

I think the US-centrism in online social justice circles is partly to blame. People in the US seem to not understand that Romani “Gypsies” are an ethnic group, and that Romani culture is not a lifestyle choice. The romanticism and criminality surrounding the idea of “Gypsies” that took hold in many parts of the US still persists. I can’t expect people to be sympathetic to inaccurate depictions of us when they cannot wrap even their heads around our existence as an ethnic group. 

I think it is my post about poverty, which is great.. because that all needed to be said. 

So, that explains the new followers. 

Anyway.. hi! 

I am actually a woman [sorry to disappoint, Bored Panda]. 

I am Roma. 

I have a lot of health issues, which includes a serious, life-limiting disease. 

I like to cook. 

I currently have most of my medical debt under control.

I try my very best to be kind, patient, and empathetic. 

I am terrible at responding to people in a timely manner. 

My mom thinks I am a reincarnated tree hugger. 

I do not feed the trolls. 

When it comes to finding information about Romani people, look for sources that are run by government programs or agencies, legitimate non-profits, human rights or activism organizations, or colleges and universities. 

If you are looking for statistics about population size, demographics of Romani people, or statistics regarding human rights issues usually government sources or international non-profits [UNICEF, Amnesty International, CERD, ERRC, etc..] are best. 

If you want information about Romani culture, traditions, or language, then it is best to go through university affiliated sites [Rombase, RomaFacts, Romlex, Romani Project, EANRS], or the personal publications of Romani professors and academics [Ronald Lee, Ian Hancock, Rajko Duric, Ethel Brooks, etc..]

If you are not sure whether or a not a source is “good” in terms of accuracy or bias, just look it up. Find reviews by Roma and non-Roma. Look up whether the author is Romani or has an association with Romani people through their academics, professional life, or humanitarian work. If know someone who is Romani, you can ask them if they have ever heard of a certain author, book, or publication. 

Blogs and personal websites, though, are NOT accurate sources of information. 

As much as many of us try to back up more generalized and broad questions with either academic sources, or by the knowledge of other Romani people, a lot of what myself and others might say on a blog comes from a place of personal experience. We are also human, and sometimes we are just wrong about things. 

Even on some “informative” websites that claim to be written by Romani people, there are inaccuracies. Sometimes, the author only gives snippets of information that pertain to one single community, but fails to disclose that. Just like you shouldn’t automatically trust the information contained on random websites and blogs are based in fact when it comes to things like science, and history, you should do a little digging before taking online information about Romani people at face value. 

Good research techniques should not go out the window when it comes to Romani people, culture, or language. 

If you come across a website that doesn’t use any sources, ever, or if those sources are other personal websites, then it probably is not a good source of accurate information.