Teaching the History of Romani Slavery: Advancing Justice and Combatting Anti-Roma Racism

Abstract

This article delves into how the history of the system of slavery in the Romanian Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia can be taught to advance justice and prevent and combat anti-Roma racism. Although this specific form of racism is prevalent in Europe and beyond, and despite the recognition of history education’s role in fighting racism, the history of Roma slavery is notably absent from European curricula and textbooks. This omission often leads to victim-blaming due to a lack of understanding of Roma’s oppression and marginalisation. However, teaching a traumatic period of history brings dilemmas. Drawing on American slavery education, we discuss both pitfalls and best practices for the teaching of Roma slavery, if the goal is to prevent anti-Roma racism. We highlight four significant steps to effectively teach Roma slavery: (a) emphasise the perspectives, stories, and narratives of the enslaved, (b) provide a balanced account that highlights acts of resistance, resilience, and the agency of enslaved Roma in the face of slavery’s brutality, (c) explicitly connect past injustices to present-day racism, demonstrating the ongoing legacies and impacts of Roma slavery and how the vicious circle can be broken, and finally (d) highlight examples of allyship between Roma and non-Roma, and to provide anti-racist role models for all pupils.