The Roma Problem in Italy–What’s the Solution?

My first introduction to Italy’s Roma community–
known by many as gypsies–happened late at night on the train, traveling from Lake Como back to our home. Guido and I had just settled into our seats, when a drunken man shoved a woman and child onto the train. The woman held a small violin and wore a long green skirt that swished over her feet as she walked. The dark-haired boy held an accordion that stuck out awkwardly from his skinny arms.

The man began yelling at the conductor, then crying, as the woman hurriedly ushered her son into a seat. The train conductor remained calm–I would have hated to see the result if this had happened in the fiery south of Italy–and finally let the man on the train, I’m assuming the family hadn’t paid at all. The man staggered between the rows of chairs, the scent of alcohol on his breath assaulting us as he walked past. I asked my boyfriend what was happening.

“They’re gypsies,” he said. “Roma. It’s quite common for the man to force his wife and child to perform and beg while he does nothing but get drunk–like this guy.”

I felt nervous the whole way home, but since the conductor sat a few seats in front of us, I didn’t say anything. I just listened to the man grumble and shout as his wife and child intermittently and breathed a sigh of relief when they got off the train a few stops later.