(Photo by Arian Selmani via Wikimedia Commons/CC BY-SA 3.0)
In parts of Central and Eastern Europe, Roma communities remain segregated. Many reside in isolated neighbourhoods far from centers and attend under-resourced schools, where they are often isolated from other students in classrooms. This long-standing separation has persisted for centuries in the region. Although recent initiatives encourage integration, Roma children continue to encounter many of the barriers their grandparents faced decades ago. These obstacles largely stem from the ineffective implementation of programs and the lack of meaningful social change.
Who are the Roma Peoples?
The Roma Peoples, commonly referred to as Roma or Romani people, are Europe’s largest ethnic minority with an estimated 10-12 million individuals living across the continent. They originally came from northern India, Pakistan and other parts of South Asia in the 12th century and travelled through Persia and the Byzantine Empire. Nomadism defined the population’s way of life before they settled in Europe. Once in the region, they traditionally settled on the outskirts of cities, typically under the pressure of local authorities.
Today, the largest Roma populations live in Romania, Bulgaria, Spain, Hungary, Turkey, and Slovakia. Although most Roma Peoples speak the local language of their home countries, they have their own unique language known as Romani with roots in Sanskrit.
Centuries of Discrimination
Throughout history, Roma Peoples have endured systematic exclusion and persecution. In the 15th century, the Hungarian nobility enslaved Roma Peoples. Later, Pope Pius V expelled them from the Holy Roman Empire. In the 17th century, Empress Maria Theresia of Austria-Hungary forced the Roma to settle, forbade the Roma from speaking their language, and sent Roma children to orphanages.
During World War II, Nazi Germany targeted the Roma Peoples, deporting many to concentration camps. An estimated 500,000 Roma were killed in what is known as the Porajmos or Roma Holocaust.
Barriers to Learning
Roma communities have faced educational discrimination for over two centuries. As early as 1816, authorities denied Roma children the right to an equal education. Throughout Europe, schools routinely excluded Roma students.
In 1927, governments began placing Roma children in so-called special schools, reinforcing systemic segregation. Even during the communist era, when Central European governments promoted social equality, they paradoxically segregated Roma children from mainstream education. The exclusion left many Roma illiterate, even as global literacy rates rose. Because governments failed to create catch-up programs, adults who left school early continue to struggle with integration and social mobility.
What Has Changed?
Statistics reveal that there are still significant problems in providing Roma Peoples access to mainstream education. According to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, only 63% of Roma children aged 6-15 attend school regularly, compared to 98% of non-Roma children. The graduation rates are even more alarming: only 18% of Roma complete upper secondary education, while the EU average is 84%. In some countries like Slovakia and Hungary, over 60% of Roma children attend schools that are completely or mostly segregated from non-Roma students.
What does this look like in practice? Let me share my own experience as a non-Roma citizen. I grew up in Budapest, Hungary, in the 2000s, where segregation was a daily reality at my primary school. Between 2009 and 2015, the school consistently assigned one class specifically for Roma children. The school attempted to conceal this practice by placing one or two Roma students in other classes—but the intent was to keep us segregated as much as possible.
They even divided the bathrooms. The ground-floor bathroom was labelled “for the Roma,” and non-Roma students were verbally warned never to use it. This isn’t so different from the stark images of segregation in the United States and apartheid South Africa. Some teachers didn’t hide their prejudice. I remember one Hungarian language teacher who routinely humiliated my Roma classmate in front of everyone, calling her “stupid” and “unworthy” whenever she struggled to answer questions. By the end of the year, the openly racist teacher failed her. At just 11 years old, she was essentially forced to change schools.
Segregation Framed as Support
Today, the European Union (EU) has funded new programs to combat discrimination against Roma communities and improve their access to education. Despite good intentions, many of these initiatives have unintentionally reinforced segregation.
A report by eight NGOs revealed that more than € 1 billion has been spent on projects that harm marginalized groups. These include substandard social housing for Roma on city outskirts, segregating Roma children in schools or mislabeling them as having disabilities, funding residential institutions for children with disabilities instead of supporting family care, and establishing remote reception centers for asylum seekers. Crucially, these projects were implemented without consulting the affected communities, once again excluding Roma voices in decision-making.
Authorities often justify these programs by claiming that this is culturally appropriate education, which meets the alleged special needs of Roma children. This attitude reflects implicit biases that suggest that Roma children are inherently different and cannot succeed in mainstream schools, while reinforcing the stereotype that Roma do not belong in European societies and cannot live alongside others.
Moreover, the lack of Roma involvement in decision-making excludes them from shaping their own lives and implies that their voices do not matter. By framing segregation as accommodation, governments mask discrimination as goodwill. Supporting inclusive family care and participatory decision-making would instead offer more sustainable alternatives, as they empower communities rather than marginalize them further.
This continued form of segregation is difficult to challenge as it may appear legitimate, framed as protection or cultural recognition. In practice, however, these tend to institutionalize inequality.
Voices of Change
Despite ongoing challenges, Roma-led initiatives are actively driving real change at the grassroots level. For instance, Hadházi Renáta, a Hungarian-Roma teacher and advocate, supports Roma communities through inclusive education. Having grown up in a segregated neighbourhood, she understands the barriers Roma students face and works to help them thrive in mainstream classrooms.
Renáta teaches high school students, including those with learning disabilities, and supports illiterate Roma adults who left school early. Her approach blends academic support with Roma cultural education. In her PhD research, she studies the Roma language and speech impediments to better integrate Roma children into Hungary’s education system.
Roma-led organizations are also present in Slovakia: EduRoma supports Roma communities and promotes equal access to quality education. Its programs reflect local needs by actively involving local Roma communities in advocacy, fieldwork, and media outreach to ensure that initiatives reflect the needs and experiences of the people they serve.
EduRoma influences education policy, partners with schools, and challenges stereotypes about Roma communities in public discourse. Through engagement, highlighting Roma leadership, and building stronger connections with non-Roma communities in Slovakia, the organization strengthens social inclusion.
Changing the Narrative with Roma-Led Solutions
Grassroots and Roma-led movements make a difference. These initiatives demonstrate that preserving Roma culture and fostering inclusion go hand in hand. Cultural revitalization flourishes through sharing, living together, and learning from one another, and ensuring equal access to quality education for all. These initiatives prioritize Roma leadership, rejecting top-down solutions and ensuring Roma communities are active agents of change.
Achieving integration and equality demands a shift in how society views Roma Peoples and their access to a quality education. ___ must develop support programs with Roma Peoples, rather than imposed by outsiders. Integration means Roma children learn alongside their peers in inclusive schools that respect cultural diversity and uphold high education standards. Equality can only be achieved when every child has access to the same opportunities, free from segregation.
Edited by Gabrielle Andrychuk
