Today's installment? I had no idea that Inspector Javert--you remember him from Les Misérables, right??--"seems to have been born Roma." Did you know that before?
The son of a fortune-teller, he spent his life "with an inexpressible hatred for that bohemian race, of which he was one."No, I am not reading Les Misérables. That note on Javert's background was how this essay in the New Yorker ends. (Sub. reqd.)
No, the essay is not about the Victor Hugo classic. It is about the Roma in contemporary France--a topic that I have blogged about before (here, and here.)
Of course, it is always a reflex response to think of my old high school friend, Srikumar, whenever I come across anything about the Roma. For two decades now his work has been about improving the conditions for the Roma and for developing an understanding between the Roma and the rest, primarily in the Czech Republic where he lives. Perhaps it should not surprise any that we people from India are drawn to the Roma; the New Yorker also notes the geographic origins:
The Roma do seem to have emigrated, as they have always claimed, in a distinct wave, perhaps a thousand years ago, from Northern India.Yep, the wandering Indians we are.
I wondered whether the essay would make any reference to Srikumar. But, the story is tightly focused on France and, hence, no place for him, I suppose.
The essay is about the same old issues that have dogged the Roma forever. They are viewed as thieves and pickpockets and abusers of the social welfare system. From the manner in which one views the Roma "problem" one might think that they are immigrating in huge numbers from Romania. Nope! Leave it to an ailing French philosopher to put matters in perspective that it is a "racist and xenophobic obsession":
it is absurd for twenty thousand misérables to exasperate sixty-five million French.If this obsession "is not about fear of the other," what might be the reason for this obsession with the 20,000?
It is the fear of the self--of what we might become.And what are the French worried that they might become? Misérables!
For the first time in thirty years, the standard of living in France is declining.Victor Hugo's Misérables meet Bill Clinton's "it's the economy, stupid!" equals beating up on the Roma, it seems.
The Economist also has a lengthy piece on the effect the economic conditions are having in countries like France, and notes the gains that the populist, nationalist, right parties are experiencing.
For the time being, however, a battered Europe is fertile terrain. There is little sign yet of a sustained drop in joblessness, nor decisive economic recovery.It will be a while before the Roma's plights go away.
2 comments:
Yes; remember the case last October when a Roma schoolgirl was taken off the bus during a school trip and expelled out of the country. The France/Roma relationship is a sad one. When the occasional robbery or violence happens where a few of the Roma are perpetrators, there is a huge backlash against the entire community.
The deeper problem is the problem of European integration. Witness the massive anti immigration hysteria in the UK as Bulgaria and Romania join the nations where free movement of people is allowed. In France a big problem is the rise of the National Front. As long as Jean Marie Le Pen was the leader, it was easy to dismiss him as a lunatic and there was no way he was going to win any election. But his daughter Marine, is building a more outwardly acceptable face while the fundamental outlook remains unchanged. Here is a real possibility of her party, and she herself, doing very well in a future election. The consequences for France, and Europe, will be huge if that happens.
It will be awful for Europe and for minorities like the Roma if the nationalist right parties make larger gains. Let us see what 2014 brings.
BTW, do you remember Srikumar from our school days? While he was not anywhere as good as you were/are in TT, he was a pretty good player and quite devoted to the game too, unlike me ;)
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