The Roma Support Group

Roma people in Iran

Last week, we had the pleasure of welcoming Manata Hashemi, Associate Professor of Iranian Studies at University of Oklahoma.

Professor Hashemi’s research explores the role of music within Roma communities in Iran, building on her extensive work on Roma music and culture across Europe. It was a wonderful opportunity to exchange ideas and discuss the importance of preserving and celebrating Roma cultural heritage.

Reflecting on her visit, Professor Hashemi shared:

“It was such a pleasure meeting Sylvia and the rest of the team at the Roma Support Group. The RSG is doing amazing work to enrich the lives of Roma communities. But what I appreciate the most is that they center Roma agency and strength, creating space for coalition-building and solidarity across class, ethnic, and cultural lines.”

We are grateful for the opportunity to connect with researchers whose work helps deepen understanding of Roma histories, culture, and communities, and we look forward to future collaborations.

As part of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller History Month, we are presenting our “Roma Stories” exhibition at Southwark Council. The exhibition will be up until this Friday so do come and visit!

📢Today we have joined 29 Romany Gypsy, Roma and Traveller charities and activists in signing an open letter responding to Kemi Badenoch’s comments linking our communities with criminality. This is concerning, especially as the statement was made during Gypsy, Roma and Traveller History Month.

Our letter calls for the remarks to be clarified and withdrawn, for cross-party condemnation of rhetoric that attributes criminality to entire communities, and for public discourse about our communities to be grounded in evidence, dignity and individual responsibility.

Criminal responsibility belongs to individuals, not entire ethnic groups. Read the full letter 👇

Statement from Report Racism GRT 📢

In a recent video, Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative Leader, stated that she intends to repeal the Public Sector Equality Duty and referred to “Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities breaking the law and getting away with it.”

She spoke about how confidence in institutions is "collapsing". She then said: And how could it not? When people can see, as in my own constituency, Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities breaking laws that no one else would get away with.

GATE Herts UK Friends, Families and Travellers 'London Gypsies and Travellers (UK Registered Charity) The Roma Support Group YORK Travellers Trust The Traveller Movement Kushti Bok Dorset Leeds GATE Leicestershire GATE GRT Friendly Churches

The leader of the Conservative party says loud and clear that we should all be treated equally under the law.
She then declares:

"Confidence in our institutions is now collapsing.
And how could it not?
When people can see, as in my own constituency, Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities breaking laws that no one else would get away with."

How can she really believe we will all be treated equally after making such derogatory, inflammatory statements???

The sad truth is that, opposite to her statement, everyone can still get away with using such language against our communities.

Full speech here: https://www.conservatives.com/news/kemi-delivers-speech-on-equality-under-the-law

Kemi Delivers speech on Equality under the Law Kemi has set out the Conservative plan to remove identity politics from public services