Stalin vs Gypsies

In their centuries-old history, the Roma (formerly known as Gypsies) experienced many difficult moments and cruel trials from their arrival in Europe until now. The history of the Roma in the USSR is no exception in this respect. Along with affirmative state policy towards them (at least until the end of the 1930s), they also fell victim to the massive political repressions of that time. In this book, the Roma victims of these repressions are made visible and the scale of the repressions against them is discussed. The authors describe the political repression of Roma not as an isolated historical phenomenon explicitly aimed at the Roma as a separate ethnic community but understand the events as a component of the mass terror and brutal against all Soviet citizens. In this way, the history of the Roma is inscribed in the general history of the USSR.

Auteur

Elena Marushiakova, Prof., and Vesselin Popov, Prof., have worked in the field of Romani studies for over four decades. Currently, they work at the Institute of Ethnology and Social Anthropology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences. They are also editors of the Brill | Schöningh publications "Roma Voices in History" and "Roma Portraits in History".