Culture is More Palatable

I met with Ms. Stanescon, a Kalderash[1] Romani woman who is the first female Romani lawyer in Brazil. (She is also a fortuneteller.) She was extremely gracious and devoted a great deal of time to answering all of my questions and introducing me to her family.

When I asked her about racism, I was surprised to hear her say that there is not much racism toward Roma ("Ciganos") in Brazil, after all, she is the most prominent Romani activist in Rio. I prodded further and asked why it was then that so many Ciganos are illiterate, she responded that it was because they do not want to send their kids to school, especially the girls. I asked if there were any racist structures perhaps also impeding access. She said that there weren't any.

I was not sure if she did not think that racism existed in Brazil at all or if she just thought that it didn't exist against Ciganos. I asked her if she thought that there was racism against Afro-Brazilians. When she said no and I followed up by asking why there were so many black people in the favelas and so few in universities, she said it was because of slavery. Thus, racism has a very narrow meaning for her -- one that does not include vestiges of past discrimination nor disparate impact.

When I asked about the poorer itinerant Ciganos, she said that they were not "real Ciganos" – that they were posing as such to ruin the reputation of Ciganos. (This is untrue -- they are simply another group of Ciganos; please refer to my entry on the Ciganos in Curitiba.) According to her, ability to speak the language and having connections to the community (e.g., I am the son of so-and-so, nephew of so-and-so) are the pillars of Romani identity. However, her children do not speak the language either and there is no doubt that they are "real Ciganos."

It was clear that she was not a typical Brazilian Romani woman – she is very wealthy and educated. It was great to see a Romani woman who had attained such status both within and outside of the community. She indicated that she set a good example by waiting to finish school and then getting married. Her family and community were not upset that she waited until she was 30 to get married because she was still a virgin and didn’t "shame the family." She was also able to marry a non-Romani man and bring him into the community, which is generally frowned upon.

Notwithstanding the fact that she does not problematize the female virginity requirement, I was surprised to find that her gender analysis was more developed than her assessment of racial structures. This was especially puzzling given her activism on behalf of Ciganos in Brazil. One explanation could be the problematic focus on culture. Because recognizing groups based on cultural differences is more palatable than an anti-racist stance, much of her activism revolves around this multiculturalist recognition that often serves to exoticize Ciganos in Brazil.


[1] The Kalderash are a subgroup of Roma who were coppersmiths. They are often referred to as the traditional Roma: they speak Romanes, maintain the customs and wear traditional clothing.