ABSTRACT
Answering the big question—why policies towards Roma are failing—requires some degree of elaboration. Inspired by critical social theories, I argue that a primary cause for this failure is the lack of ethnic relevance in policies targeting Roma: that is, the way these policies address Romani identity issues—issues that Roma consider important about themselves and that offer meaning to them and that influence their attitudes and behavior. For example, inclusive education might prove to be a transformative concept for educational policies, but if it does not include ethnic relevance, Roma might evaluate it rather negatively. If those policies lead a successful Roma high school or university graduate to hide or to refuse to disclose his or her ethnic identity openly in relevant contexts, from the perspective of his or her Roma parents, those policies may have failed their child. Ethnic identity may become a form of oppression that pressures one to avoid disclosing their identity and avoid engaging in collective activities with other members of their ethnic group. Identity may even inflict psychological trauma on certain members of the community. In addition, the way Romani identity is perceived by non-Roma and by institutions influences the behavior of these actors towards Roma—whether these actors are private individuals, formal or informal groups or state insttutions. Hence, in order to successfully bring social change to society and to Roma communities, policies targeting Roma must consider the complexity of Romani identity and a whole host of issues associated with that identity.
