one to two thousand four yes i was born
in 1991 I’m 24 years old very young go
long future ahead but living in a
Slovakia was a probably one of the worst
memories I’ve ever had I am coming from
the Roma culture officially a Slovakian
but there’s nothing I can prove to you
that I am aroma few years ago proving to
someone else that I can speak a Romany
language was an evidence of main aroma
but these days even a non Roma people
will speak the language so actually i
have no proof whatsoever to prove that i
am aroma another word officially I was
classed i am still class to be a vacuum
and a few few weeks ago i’ve seen a on a
noose little documentary with the head
teacher in slovakia I cannot tell her
name for a confidentiality but she was
asked a question saying how many Roma
children do you have in school and she
said none actually the school is aroma
school all Roma school and she was right
in a statutory there is no Roma school
because everybody has a password saying
i am a Slovakian I speak Slovak so none
of us has a Roma passport or to say we
speak Romany obviously we I personally
my parents their parents generation and
generations went to school only with
Roma children a very segregated place
school with children who are known who
are not multicultural only a children
who speaks the Romany and therefore
we was brought up in a homeland in a
mother tongue language which is a Romany
let me tell you something about let me
tell you something about the romanian
language romanian language is in the
reigning language it has approximately
3,000 vocabularies it’s not our formal
communication you can not find a books
in the language in a Romani language and
it’s not a written form of communication
and then we have our other parents
talking to us in Romanian language a
very limited for example these days we
can talk to our kids in English then
there’s a table it’s a square shape it
has four legs you can put chest chest
day we have a dinner on the table and so
and so on in Romany issues a table and
no many over Roman is hard a table
because where I’m from was a very poor
very poor we leave maybe few other
families in a very small small room and
I won’t even cold at a house because
most of the house were built with the
woods something maybe like a cottage
very very poor and that’s where I come
from majority of people when they talk
to me say are you a Slovakian your
proposal akhiyan you Eastern European I
said no I’m an aroma I’m aroma and when
we go to a maroma and I’m very proud to
be here and say that I’m aroma this is
probably the only place that I can have
the courage to say hey I’m aroma I don’t
have to say I’m a Slovakian I’m aroma I
speak Romany is the way I was accepted
here multi-culture in a multicultural
country let me go back in the Romanian
language so we start to talk to our kids
in Romanian language very limited
vocabulary but the age when there was
six and that’s where the compulsory age
where they have to go to a school in
Slovakia and guess what they have to
learn a second another language which is
a Slavic language so there are six where
they vary
well behind with the romanian language
and therefore they going to school to
learn a Slavic language and everything
else in a Slavic language so obviously
very very very difficult personally I
felt twice because back home you have to
get certain mark sir and you have to sit
an exam at the end of the year to move
on to a next year and I failed twice I
was in a way in a process of becoming
illiterate yes I could not read could
not write very limited and then
certainly my father who is in the
audience has made a decision he said I
want a better life I want to do
something that’s gonna be very useful
very good my food for my children’s
future he heard about England joining
the EU and welcoming all the Eastern
Europeans he moved to he decide in june
two thousand four he decided to leave
slovakia and move to England he had no
money nothing with you remember our
family the collection say that you’ve
got his money’s money buy tickets and go
because he was kind of a clever man in
the village and he moved to Cardiff in
South Wales and he had about two months
he learned basic English he found a job
he saved some money he rented a flat and
then he sent his money we moved to to
Cardiff in august two thousand four but
simply i was an awaiting news to go to
school I went to school in willows high
school still remember the name of the
school and we i was in i think india
nine no English very limited very little
English economy speak Slovak pay mind
certainly I was there sinner could you
imagine what it’s like to see other
culture people you’ve never seen seen a
different people different language
different tradition when we move to
England it was very weird we drive on a
different side you open the doors if
away you offer you up
the air was different food called
everything so what’s going on I said Wow
ok let me and it was it took me a long
long time to adapt to it and moved went
to school in with pattern I went to
school in willows and within a few
months I was expelled permanently
excluded from school because i was
called DD which is dangerous dave i was
very violent very very very how kind of
a mess I can’t find the words to
describe myself who I was I was totally
different person I wasn’t who I am now
and then I was kicked out from school
and then I going to lot of trouble I was
on a substance misuse you name it I was
into everything and I had no interest
whatsoever about life education anything
not interested at all live in my own way
I was to think and again my dad made his
decision again let’s move to Sheffield
in october two thousand four seven moved
to sheffield i met a few people who were
my heroes people who i met who helped me
too who helped me to settle in England
who introduced me to certain things who
kind of opened my eyes in a good way who
didn’t try to change me physically you
have to do this this is england you’ve
got to learn the language but they
welcomed me they loved me they say we’re
happy for you we love you the way you
are but you know you’ve got future you
know you can do this no you could study
you can become a doctor to me a doctor
I’m aroma and the mentality rumor was
whatever Rama stand on the grass will
not grow and whatever you study it will
never be will never be useful because
back in I can talk about hundreds in 100
years ago going to school wasn’t a
compulsory nothing at all I come from a
background where my mom my dad is
educated man they doesn’t have a phone
convocation it was well known another
influence it could become a mayor of the
wheelie of the village but he decided to
move here my mom is illiterate you can’t
read right my nan parents grandparents
none of them come none of them did go to
school are probably the only person in
my family in generation who are kind of
interesting simply interested in
education move to Cardiff move to
Sheffield here is go learning English by
himself gain all these books studying
and everything anyone till now I don’t
even have GCSEs nothing I was starting
i’m in process i have applied for a bit
tech level 3 health and social care of
God place I am in a process of
developing myself more and more with my
career and Here I am I can Stanton say
here that since I’ve met certain people
showing me the way teaching me and
everything else was something amazing
I’ve also met another very interesting
man and I believe everybody knows him in
this place everybody probably heard
about him and yes it is Jesus Christ he
he i became a christian at a very very
young age I was about a 16 years old
when I become a Christian start to be
interested in a Christianity and I’ve
actually met through my wife because she
was into that already and when I met my
wife I was about 16 years old another
interesting fact is that when I met her
I said to my parents or I get married to
her say why you’re becoming nearly 17
and say yes I do then I went to my we
went to town on in sheffield and i said
i would like to get married how would
you 17 how’s your fiancee she’s 18 so
she’s fine she doesn’t need permission
from her parents but I do so I took a
paper am I said to my family I want to
get married and I was just very abnormal
in a culture to get martinis in the age
of 17 and they go I go Mary to the age
of 17 and then I got kids now of go
three kids and my kids first language is
probably English they stood the stool
speak Romany but if they they are more
native in the English language which I
am very proud I’ve spent a lot of time
with my kids and I’m still spending and
what what I believe in let me tell you
something about myself in my you
pick up occupation I work in a school
for a few years now as a multilingual tu
teaching assistant and Al in school I
work in school where I hated school and
now I am a staff in school supporting
and teaching our kids roma kids and who
are non-roma kids I’m there working with
kids and I’ve got a vision that I’m very
very fascinated well I’m very delighted
to say that I’ve got vision to work with
the Roma community to promote the
difference to actually help them to
succeed in a future life now how we
going to do that how can we do that one
man cannot change change the future it’s
all about a teamwork working together
with everyone if you can if we can
actually understand where they come from
and I can stand here and tell you all
about the history I can tell you about
everything they’ve been through all my
culture everybody heard about World War
two what many people been through the
killing and during the Holocaust and all
that but not many people do know about
the Roma I mean I work in school and
avid about our British kids were very
protected they’ve evacuated a man went
to say I went to order the world war two
females were working Virgo they’ve had
they have out sirens protection shelters
everything we’re back home the Roma
people were treated worse than I animals
who have whatever no protection no
warnings no shelters nothing I remember
because my none was born in nineteen
thirty so she was nine years old
she was going through all this and she
told me all about it it was very bad
many over half a million of people got
killed as a cuted physically murdered
was very very dramatic very bad in in
sheffield most of you probably know I’ve
got to just give you a practical use
graph to end if you are interested
working with them please build the trust
and respect with them set the clear
boundaries and be straightforward and
assertive aim for a consistent worker
who can be involved in long-term working
partnership with the parents empowerment
engage in confidence building with Roma
community remember the Roma people are
not necessarily aware of their rights
and responsibilities actively encourage
Roma people not trying to change them
good knowledge and understanding of a
cultural historical and ethnic
background and show that you can
communicate problem with the family to
educate Roma people about British
British culture and system thank you for your time