Can it get any worse for the Roma? Indeed it can and has.
Less than 20 miles from Auschwitz that was built by Germany when it invaded and occupied Poland , where once they gassed the Roma, football fans chant “Gypsies out”. The small Roma community of Andrychow is living in fear since Polish far-right groups began a campaign of harassment against them. The campaign began with a rally last month organised by Robert Winnicki, a far-right leader from Warsaw who said all the 100 or so ethnic Roma living in a town of 20,000 people should be driven out and where the chant “Cyganies raus” (Gypsies or Roma out) was heard and has continued with social media and intimidation. Roma residents say they are living in fear. Rafal Strauss, said the community had started keeping their children home from school. Mieczyslaw Pankowski, said he was now too scared to take his seven-year-old disabled daughter for treatment in a nearby town and the family lived in fear of attacks at night: “We take it in turns to keep watch,” he said. “We’re frightened to go to sleep in case someone throws a bottle through the window.”
In Andrychow last month, a pregnant Roma woman was attacked as she walked in the street. Soon after, two young ethnic Poles were beaten up in a Roma revenge attack. Supporters of the local football club, Beskid Andrychow, set up a page on Facebook. It published accounts of what it said were violent attacks by Roma, and photographs of ethnic Poles it said had been beaten up. The page has now been “liked” by 14,182 people. One post read: “We’re not going to sit quietly and pretend that everything is OK. We are shouting long and loud: enough of Gypsy impunity!” Vigilante patrols by football fans were still going on.
The Hungarian Jobbik Party, a neo-nazi party, snubbed even by other far-right parties as anti-Semitic and racist appears to be spreading its ideology. Tamas Fodor, a Jobbik activist, was in Warsaw this month for meetings with like-minded Poles. “...if they see something that worked in Hungary, they can use it,” he said. “I think that the organisers may have viewed certain successes in Hungary as an inspiration,”
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Less than 20 miles from Auschwitz that was built by Germany when it invaded and occupied Poland , where once they gassed the Roma, football fans chant “Gypsies out”. The small Roma community of Andrychow is living in fear since Polish far-right groups began a campaign of harassment against them. The campaign began with a rally last month organised by Robert Winnicki, a far-right leader from Warsaw who said all the 100 or so ethnic Roma living in a town of 20,000 people should be driven out and where the chant “Cyganies raus” (Gypsies or Roma out) was heard and has continued with social media and intimidation. Roma residents say they are living in fear. Rafal Strauss, said the community had started keeping their children home from school. Mieczyslaw Pankowski, said he was now too scared to take his seven-year-old disabled daughter for treatment in a nearby town and the family lived in fear of attacks at night: “We take it in turns to keep watch,” he said. “We’re frightened to go to sleep in case someone throws a bottle through the window.”
In Andrychow last month, a pregnant Roma woman was attacked as she walked in the street. Soon after, two young ethnic Poles were beaten up in a Roma revenge attack. Supporters of the local football club, Beskid Andrychow, set up a page on Facebook. It published accounts of what it said were violent attacks by Roma, and photographs of ethnic Poles it said had been beaten up. The page has now been “liked” by 14,182 people. One post read: “We’re not going to sit quietly and pretend that everything is OK. We are shouting long and loud: enough of Gypsy impunity!” Vigilante patrols by football fans were still going on.
The Hungarian Jobbik Party, a neo-nazi party, snubbed even by other far-right parties as anti-Semitic and racist appears to be spreading its ideology. Tamas Fodor, a Jobbik activist, was in Warsaw this month for meetings with like-minded Poles. “...if they see something that worked in Hungary, they can use it,” he said. “I think that the organisers may have viewed certain successes in Hungary as an inspiration,”
From here
13 comments:
The post in no way wished to infer that the Polish people were responsible for the Final Solution of the Jews, or what the Roma call the Porajmos. The death camps were built by the Nazis and many were situated outside Germany such as in Poland. 150,000 Poles were estimated to have been sent to Auschwitz.
Wiki has a history of the camp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auschwitz_concentration_camp
Readers may be interested in this short blog about the Polish writer Tadeusz Borowski
http://mailstrom.blogspot.com/2013/02/tadeusz-borowski.html
"The death camps were built by the Nazis"
Once again this silly politicall corectness... It was built by Germans.
Also article is manipulated, Roma people in Andrychów are much more agressive and provocative than ethnic Poles, this conflict was started by Roma who used to steal and attack others since many years. Now when football hooligans kicked in, it's easy to blame Poles and show Roma as innocent victims, but the conflict started long time ago, and not by Poles.
i'm beginning to suspect that your agenda is not factual accuracy but to promote your own Polish nationalism. i hope i am mistaken.
The very first concentration camp, Dachau, was built by Nazis for German anti-Nazis. By expecting the blog to describe death camps as being built by Germans, commits the same error as pointed out, of inferring all Germans as a people were responsible and not simply a political section of the population.
Again Wiki has more information of the history of the Roma in Poland
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polska_Roma
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bergitka_Roma
Also Carpathian and Baltic Roma exist in Poland.
Yes, 150,000 Poles were sent to Auschwitz by the GERMANS, who built and operated the camps!
In the articles you wrote of Polish far-right groups and Hungarian Jobbik Party, a neo-nazi party. Assuming you feel that is alright then you would agree it fine to write that the concentration camps were built by a German far-right group or German Nazis oversaw the gassing of Roma in Auschwitz?
Having looked at a few of your blogs then as a British born individual I object to the way this blog talks of the British royal family (they are not my royal family), British Empire (I am against subjugating other countries) and British government (I vote labour). If you can’t attribute the actions of some Germans to all Germans then why do it for the British?
Further can you please explain why you do this for other countries such as US Senate, Brazilian government and Ukrainian loyalists?
It seems that you don’t mind using country and ethnicity except for Germans. Rather than collectively hold the German people responsible for the actions of the democracy elected German government, the actions of the German state and the atrocities carried out by the German army and police they get to hide behind the word Nazi.
Jan if you have read the blog you will note that it identifies the State - the government - with the ruling class. On a few occasions in history a political party or a person usurps the state and turns it to their advantage - Marx called it Bonapartism. You will also see that we are very anti-nationalist, supporting no notion of the rights of nations or independence movements or national liberation or whatever term is use. We seek the end of countries and nations , and see all workers as brothers and sisters...a class and not a nationalist view.
You are right that in 1933 the Nazi Party were democratically elected but no more free or independent elections were held afterwards so we shall never really know whether the Nazi Part was supported by the majority of Germans. And as i said , the very first victims of the German Nazis were their political opponents. The fact that Germans joined in the war is a tragic indictment of nationalism...Too many people say "my country right or wrong." and patriotic propaganda is a strong weapon. As is racism and religious bigotry, other tools of domination and oppression.
Many more nationalities than Germans were involved in the process that led death camps, from French policemen to Ukrainian nationalists.
To call the Conservative and Liberal Democratic coalition the British government is a means of identification as it would be when the Labour Party (sad to see that you vote for it) when in power is also the British government. As i said they all represent the ruling class albeit differing section.
Sometimes people take a short cut in describing political realities as it is assumed the reader is aware of nuances of terminology. Western Powers is taken to mean the US, the UK, and various European and also Canada...more or less NATO. Non-Geographically the description includes Japan and Australia . Russia and China usually get given separate mention even when in alliance.
The British Royal Family is constitutionally recognised as such and as a UK citizen you will note technically it is Her Majesty's Government on your passport (which does not actually belong to you but is property of the government which they can withhold or take back)
The logic you hold that a whole 'people, should be held responsible for the actions of its ruling class is not one the blog endorses.
Why did you write that the death camps were built by the Nazis? Not all those who ran the concentration camps were Nazis. Not all Nazis were involved in the concentration camps. Some Nazi even suffered in the concentration camps. The truth is that more Germans who were non-Nazi party members took part in atrocities than German Nazis. Even those Germans who didn’t take part where happy to accept the plunder.
Instead of placing the blame on where it belongs, i.e. Germany, Poles have to put up misleading statements like “Less than 20 miles from Auschwitz in Poland, where once they gassed the Roma” implying Poles are responsible. Thanks for fighting hatred of Germans. Just wish you applied the same value to Poles.
Please note that the terms "Poland", "Germany" and "German occupied Poland" are not interchangeable and refer to significantly different GEO-POLITICAL entities. The camps were NOT in "Poland". They were in "German occupied Poland". Please change the text.
Stefan Komar
"Less than 20 miles from Auschwitz in Poland, where once they gassed the Roma"
I have amended this as requested
Now let me hear from you the unequivocal condemnation of any anti-Roma discrimination that has been increasing in Poland in recent years and a condemnation of extremist nationalism as earlier blogged here
http://socialismoryourmoneyback.blogspot.com/2013/11/the-march-of-polish-right.html
But reported in the blog post link but also here
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/09/us-poland-farright-roma-idUSKBN0FE0AS20140709
Can i have a condemnation of the Jobbik Party, a Hungarian neo-nazi party, that is stirring up racial hatred in Poland.
Thank you for altering the article to more truthfully reflect the facts. Sorry for not approaching you in a different manner. I will learn from these exchanges.
I unequivocal condemn anti-Roma discrimination. Not convinced it is increasing in Poland but even if it decreasing then any form of racism must be denounced.
Have limited knowledge of them but I hope that the Jobbik Party disappear sooner rather than later.
And the blog has learned to be more exact and accurate in how it expresses aspects of history.
Sadly, right-wing nationalism is on the rise, nearly everywhere, even in India where Modi was elected and in Japan where they are re-militarising under Abe, so it is not simply a European development.
In regards to Poland i am not sure if you read this story.
http://libcom.org/blog/migrant-workers-between-polish-english-nationalism-thoughts-after-markfield-park-attack-jun
In this time of austerity and recession it is important workers are not divided by nationality. We see the tragic situation of Ukraine - Pro EU plutocrats v Pro-Russian autocrats using workers to control the country, both sides playing on nationalism for support.
Thanks for the change. I will have to look into the other issues you write of. Considering how things get misrepresented, I feel compelled to educate myself before I make any statements. As you've probably heard, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
Again my appreciation for the correction of my sloppy writing.
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