Faces and causes of Roma marginalization in local contexts: Hungary, Romania, Serbia

Abstract

The Faces and Causes of Roma Marginalization in Local Communities research endeavor explored the key factors perpetuating Roma marginalization at the municipal and community level in three countries of Central and Eastern Europe: Hungary, Romania and Serbia. It sought to analyze the economic, political, demographic, and social forces at local level which shape practices and consequences of social exclusion and potential pathways to inclusion. A multi-layered approach was designed to implement this research idea: the locality (municipality) of ethnically mixed communities composed the first level; the Roma communities, neighborhoods or segments of selected localities were examined as the second level; and interethnic relations within the selected localities were identified as the third level of the research approach. This volume presents the country studies and a comparative analysis about local communities that mobilize a variety of means and actions to either maintain clear-cut ethnic distinctions or to move toward a certain degree of inclusion.