ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explains the borders of sovereignty in Europe and their collusion through the movement of people with other border controls and policies. The word 'Roma' appeared in European and North American newspapers and magazines with increasing frequency after 1989 and the fall of the Berlin Wall. One of the enduring features of much of the anti-Roma rhetoric in Europe is the presentation of Roma as immigrants. Europe's Roma, however one counts them, are by and large nationals of countries which are Member States of the EU. The book examines the evolving relation between citizenship, state protection and minority status. It also explains the various ways in which these categories intersect in EU and Member States' foreign politics and policies, has been the Canada-Czech Republic visa affair of 2009.
