RECOGNIZING THE ROMA: A STUDY OF THE HOLOCAUST AS VIEWED IN ROMANIA by Michelle L. Kelso A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Sociology) in The University of Michigan 2010 Doctoral Committee: Associate Professor Renee Anspach, Co-Chair Professor Michael D. Kennedy, Brown University, Co-Chair Professor Jeffrey E. Mirel Associate Professor Fatma Muge Gocek Associate Professor Geneviève Zubrzycki © Michelle L. Kelso 2010 Dedication In memory of my grandmother Irene Earnest To my daughter Calia Alexe My two loving and lovely women of May. ii Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to express my love and gratitude to my family, Alexandru S. Alexe and Calia Alexe, for their enduring support of my academic adventures. They have been loving, kind, patient, and in the case of my six-year-old daughter, provided me with much needed comic relief and a brilliant life perspective. Next I need add in the entire Alexe-Enescu clan, as they have been nothing short of wonderful for all these years. The Kelso-Baldus family as well for their support, especially my aunt Mary Baldus. There are a multitude of others to thank, as it really does ‘take a village’ so to speak, to get a dissertation done. My deepest thanks to Marioara Trancă and her family who “adopted” me, guiding me through Romani communities, and without whom this work would never have been possible. Robert and Olimpia Trancă and their wonderful children for all their assistance. All the Romani survivors who took time to speak with me, to teach me, and to place their trust in me. The Ladies Who Lunch: Jessica Charbeneau, Emily Greenman, Susan Lee-Rife, Brienna Perelli-Harris, and Amanda Toler, whose laughter, love and humor have kept me going. Jennifer Fox, Krista Hegburg, Justyna Pawlak, and Shannon Woodcock - all dear hearts whose friendships have kept me sane over the years. Sister Mary Rose Christy and Mary Veal whose work inspires me. Cristina Bejan, Boyd Cryer, Ioana and Lucian Filip, Barbara Nelson, Melania Oproiu, Greg Rife, Amy Simon, and Vincent Slatt, who know the true meaning of the word friendship. Much love and thanks to you all. My fantastic committee - Renee Anspach, Fatma Muge Gocek, Michael Kennedy, Jeffrey Mirel, Geneviève Zubryzcki for their encouragement and mentorship. I never would have make it through without your support. The UM Sociology Department, especially iii Barbara Anderson, Mark Chesler, Howard Kimeldorf, and Jeannie Loughry. Also, I owe much gratitude to Cynthia Buckley and Mary Neuburger, whose mentorship has been so influential over the years. The Fulbright Program and the Boren Fellowship Program, for their financial and logistical support of my work. The ever friendly staff at the UM Center for Russian and East European and Eurasian Studies. Linda Miller and Jill Rachele Stucker, and, especially Shannon Woodcock and Alexandru Alexe for reading various drafts. Felicia Waldman, Mihai Chioveanu, Ana-Maria Popa, Liviu Beris, Oliver Lustig and the entire teacher training team, who trekked across Romania discovering the relevance of Holocaust education today. Last, but certainly not least, all the folks at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum who were so generous with their time. Thanks to Paul Shapiro, Radu Ioanid, the library and archive staffs, and all my fellow research fellows. iv Table of Contents Dedication ........................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ iii Chapter One: Introduction ............................................................................................... 13 Research Philosophy, Methods and Chapter Directions ................................................. 4 Romania as a Case Study ................................................................................................ 8 Sociology Confronts Genocide ..................................................................................... 10 Historical background: Roma and the Holocaust ......................................................... 15 The Contemporary Situation of Roma .......................................................................... 20 Chapter Two: Representations of Romani Memory of the Holocaust .............................. 25 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 25 Methodology ............................................................................................................. 29 Historical Background .................................................................................................. 32 The Holocaust in Romania............................................................................................ 33 The Deportation of Roma to Transnistria ..................................................................... 37 The Expulsion of the Nomads....................................................................................... 39 Evacuation of settled Roma .......................................................................................... 41 Conditions in Transnistria ............................................................................................. 44 The Advent of Holocaust Testimonies ......................................................................... 52 El Phure: Finding Romani survivors in Romania......................................................... 53 Framing the Romani Narrative: External and Internal Constraints .............................. 54 Romani Voices .............................................................................................................. 60 ‘Lady, please give me some bread’: The Effects of Hunger ......................................... 63 The Toll of Typhus ....................................................................................................... 68 A Shot at Freedom: Escape from the Camps ................................................................ 73 Narratives Emerge After 1989 ...................................................................................... 76 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 81 Chapter Three: Representations of and Reactions to Roma as Holocaust Victims ......... 84 Introduction ................................................................................................................... 84 Methodology ................................................................................................................. 90 v Film as medium for Holocaust education ..................................................................... 92 Transforming Testimony into Documentary: The Conceptualization of a Film .......... 96 Hidden Sorrows: Form and Content ........................................................................... 104 Hidden Sorrows in Classroom: American Foreign Policy and the Holocaust ............ 114 Romanian Audiences Respond to Hidden Sorrows .................................................... 116 “Gypsies have a history”: High School Students Awaken to Romani History ........... 121 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 134 Chapter Four: Romanian Teachers and Holocaust Education ........................................ 136 Introduction ................................................................................................................. 136 Majority Attitudes, Minority Marginalization ............................................................ 139 Methodology ............................................................................................................... 146 The Holocaust and Romanian Roma .......................................................................... 148 Holocaust Consciousness in Romania: 1945-2009 ..................................................... 149 The Holocaust in the Classroom: Democracy Building Through Civic Education .... 151 The Romanian Educational System: Between policy and praxis ............................... 152 The Impact of Teacher Trainings ................................................................................ 157 Adding Roma: Teachers’ reactions to Roma as Victims of the Holocaust................. 163 The European Arena: Recognizing and Teaching the Romani Genocide .................. 171 Conclusion .................................................................................................................. 182 Chapter Five: Conclusion ............................................................................................... 185 The Holocaust Monument........................................................................................... 185 Summary of the Findings ............................................................................................ 192 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 196 vi Chapter One: Introduction Forgive us, brothers and sisters, for what was, since we will construct the future of Romania together. – Romanian President Traian Băsescu1 This dissertation aims to clarify how some Romanian Roma, a virtually unknown class