What makes Madonna think she knows anything about Romany Gypsies? Once again she has put her big foot in it, and this time at a concert in front of thousands of fans in Bucharest.
During the concert she said she felt 'sad' at all the discrimination against Gypsies and Roma! This did not go down well with her Romanian fans, and I have to say, for someone who has probably never even seen a Gypsy close-up before she went to Romania, she has a bloody cheek!.
Closeted as she is in America, Madonna would not recognise a Gypsy if he stole her purse! She has no understanding of the long history here in Europe of the thievery and begging that is the basis of their culture. All she has seen is the music and dance side of them because she has Gypsy musicians with her on the tour.
What does she know of the centuries of stealing anything that is not bolted down, of the pickpockets that roam the streets of every major town in Eurpope, and the constant begging? What does she know of the encampments all over Europe that turn a once pretty site into a rubbish tip?
We in Europe know all too well, that if Gypsies move into the area, you had better bolt your doors and lock away your valuables, because otherwise they will disappear. It has been this way for centuries because it is the basis on which their lives are founded.
As soon as Romany children are old enough to walk they are taught how to beg on the streets. When they are old enough to run they are taught how to steal wallets, purses and other valuables we carry on our persons. There is no if, but, or maybe, that is the way it is, and always has been.
You may well ask, what do I know of Gypsies and Roma? Well, I have spent a great deal of time in Romania in the last sixteen years. I have seen where and how they live, and I have talked with many Romanians who fear and detest them for the stain they place on the Romanian people.
During my first visit to Romania many years ago with an aid organisation, the villigers were unloading a truck into a storage area. Much of the cargo was clothes for the village people. There were half a dozen males who volunteered to work inside the truck passing out the plastic bags while many more people carried them inside the building.
It was no more than ten minutes later that a commotion broke out at the back of the truck and the Village Mayor removed the men from inside. We were astounded to see them peel off five or six pairs of trousers and four or five shirts they had put on under thier own clothes while in the truck. Such is the cunning of these Romany. Thankfully, the Mayor knew his people and there were no more incidents after the offenders were removed from the scene.
I have seen children of three and four years old begging on the streets of Bucharest, and one time I even had my wallet stolen. So, Yes! I do know what they are like.
The really sad part, is the population of Europe have put all the Romanian people in the same category! In reality, non-gypsies are good, hardworking, and extremely generous people who would do anything to help if you were in a bad situation.
Romanians are the complete opposite of the Gypsies and Roma, but such is the influence and total distrust of the latter throughout Europe over the centuries, that the ordinary Romanian people can do no good.
My wife and I have a Romanian friend here in Spain. We recently helped him and and his wife to settle here in the south after work dried up in Madrid. He and his wife are hard working, conciencious people with good hearts, but can he find a job here in the south; not likely!
He has applied for many many jobs since they arrived, but the first question from his potential employer is; "Where are you from?" As soon as he says Romania, the immediate reply is "I'll call you tomorrow!" Of course they never do because the bad reputation of the Gypsies always precedes any honest Romanian trying to get a job.
It is an undisputed fact that most of the petty crime commited here in the south of Spain can be laid at the feet of the Romany.
There are of course some Romanians who are just basic criminals, I will not dispute this fact. I personnaly know several who even boast of their thieving exploits and are quite proud of the fact. But to be fair, there are career criminals in every race on earth. To me, it does not mean that all should be tarred with the same brush, but you cannot get away from the centuries of distrust and hatred sown by the Romany!
Romania has been dogged by the stigma of the Romany people for too long, but I fear as long as they exist without changing their culture, things will never improve, and even then it will take generations.
Will Madonna ever learn to engage brain before opening mouth?
Roy.
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