Young Gypsies about to enter the university, but cannot enter disco

9. 3. 2010 / Kateřina Švidrnochová

In a text extracted from Romano Hangos- -- Kateřina Švidrnochová tells us about a yearly meeting that happened on the second week of February -- promoted by NGO Slovo 21 (that congregates foreigners in Czech Republic) -- of Roma/Gypsy students who wish to enter the university. Twenty-two students came, mostly from Brno, Pardubice and Prague. During the weekend they went through a series of tests that should show their personal and educational expectations.

A Czech version of this article is in CLICK HERE

However, that busy weekend was shortly disrupted by the fact that the young group of Gypsies were not allowed into a disco club! The excuses used to keep them from entering the dance place were the need for a V.I.P. card, inappropriate dress or the necessity of owning a club card. She says that those Gypsies are used to listening to similar arguments in Brno, where in the end they have to frequent some few "open" (for Roma people) places. Švidrnochová laments that this type of situation reminds us of the segregation of blacks in the United States. She believes that "it is understandable that the owner of some business has the right to choose who he or she wants as clients, the same way as we choose the people whom we invite home for a visit". She adds, though, that her "heart gets broken by looking at the sad eyes of those yongsters", who were all "washed up, perfumed all over", but had to spend the night looking for a place where the security guards would be the "right ones", which would not make them pay for the mistakes of others that looked like them.

Vytisknout

Obsah vydání | Úterý 16.3. 2010