In our case, we chose to focus primarily on bringing to the surface hate speech towards Roma people, and contrasting it with research and statistics that illuminate the reality of Roma people. We found that a majority of hate speech painted a caricature of Roma people as beggars and thieves who are living on the margins and unwilling to contribute to society. Roma societies have been a part of Europe and Poland from the middle ages on, but they have historically been marginalized. For example, one in three Roma are unemployed, 20 percent are not covered by health insurance, and 90 percent are living below national poverty lines. Using this as our springboard, we wanted to deconstruct these stereotypes and social conditions. Are they well-founded, or are there structural barriers to social mobility for the Roma population?
It became apparent from multiple reports such as the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights’ 2012 report The Situation of Roma in 11 EU Member States and a report detailing hate speech in Poland that this population faced countless structural barriers. In regards to employment, healthcare, education, housing, among other essential spheres of life, Roma experience significant discrimination. This juxtaposition of research and hate speech gave birth to our slogan: Don’t Keep Roma Out, Keep Out Hate Speech. The images we created had a quote from hate speech found online and a statistic illustrating the circumstances of people who are Roma.
Figure 1 *Statistic from European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, The State of Roma in 11 EU Member States, 2012: p.24
Figure 2 *Statistic from European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights : The State of Roma in 11 EU Member States, 2012: p. 23
However, we also knew that research and statistics failed to capture the holistic experiences of members of the Roma community. To try to understand more personal experiences and reflections we contacted multiple existing Roma organizations in Poland. Unfortunately, we failed to receive a response from majority of organizations. Our best luck was coming across a few members of the Roma community in Warsaw by chance and a Skype interview with a Roma activist.
Another point of hesitation was that of the sustainability of our campaign. Should we use footage with people who are Roma if we are unable to sustain a relationship with them or this campaign beyond the duration of the fellowship? Would using Roma people’s stories and faces in our campaign be another form of exploitation of an already disenfranchised group? To what extent were we willing to go to attract attention to the problems facing this population? In this field, one must be careful not to fall into the trap of making false promises to the communities one seeks to build campaigns around.
As a result, we decided to use videos in our campaign to focus on the Poles’ perspective of Roma people and juxtapose this perspective with statistics illustrating the reality of Roma people. Our first two videos did not show any people, but utilized different images of closing doors that are layered with hate speech and statistics. We use this as a simple but concise metaphor of the effects that stereotypes and stigmas have in society by closing doors of opportunity. Through our final video, which is more of a short documentary, we actually interviewed passerby’s on the streets of the Old Town in Warsaw, to ask, first, what they know about Roma people and, second, if they know any Roma people. The portrayal of some people and exclusion of others in the final product of the video are a direct result of our reflection on the topic. For example, we did not show the faces of the interviewees, because it is not the opinion of one person that we are focused on, but moreover the opinion of the society that they represent. In the production we also decided to edit out a few scenes with two young Roma children that were playing the accordion. However, because of the way we filmed their whole faces and the fact that they were children made us rethink their purpose in the film, because this scene could have been easily misinterpreted as potentially perpetuating stereotypes of the Roma community. The power of the film is, as we see it, even stronger and clearer because we have edited out certain parts, and emphasized others.
In a circumstance like this, it is easy to look at the requirements for our social campaign to receive a benchmark of likes, views, shares of the images/videos we produce and use whatever means necessary to achieve those results. It is a tightrope walk to, on one hand, attract attention for the cause and on the other hand, use controversial images that may perpetuate stereotypes for the sake of garnering attention. This image of the “Liking isn’t helping” campaign led by Crisis Relief Singapore to address Facebook Philanthropy powerfully illustrates a similar sentiment we were confronted with regarding this exercise given our difficulties connecting with the community and time limitations:
So we were left with the question of how not to risk trivializing the plight of Roma people internationally or in Poland for the sake of our own self-congratulations? We are certain that engagement in the form of a social campaign cannot effectively function without an active outreach to and collaboration with the community one seeks to help. Just as important is the constant reflection on: at what- or whose- expense are you achieving your results? This campaign has been an opportunity to learn more about Roma people through research, though we are still a long way from understanding what the lived experiences of the Roma community encompasses on a daily basis. Sometimes, it is necessary to choose not to walk in somebody else’s shoes and instead recognize one’s limitations and find a different angle to ethically achieve the results. However, it is equally important not to be paralyzed when facing such a choice and worthwhile to take action in the face of hate speech.
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