Roma Kavartela: Urbanization in Post-Socialist Bulgaria
This image is of a Roma neighborhood on the outskirts of Chirpan, Bulgaria that was captured in August of 2007, roughly 17 years after the collapse of the communist system in Bulgaria. The introduction of the free market created winners and losers throughout Central and Eastern Europe. The biggest losers of transition are the Roma populations of this region. The Balkan region is home to the largest population of Roma people in the world. Most of the population resides in Bulgaria and Romania where the estimated population of Roma is 1.5 million in each country.
Urban Crisis:
The path of transition has severally marginalized and created an urban housing crisis for Roma populations in Central and Eastern Europe. As this photograph illustrates, Roma populations are often pushed out of cities and forced to live in poorly constructed houses along the urban fringe. Meanwhile, The large communist-era housing blocks of the city of Chirpan are visible in the distance.
Many Roma neighborhoods in post-socialist Bulgaria are among the poorest communities in the world. Often these neighborhoods are void of clean water, sanitation and electric utilities despite their presence in a semi-industrial nation. Sometimes Roma neighborhoods obtain basic amenities through illegal means as a survival strategy. However, more and more local, regional and national authorities are working to bring legal and quality infrastructures into Roma neighborhoods. While the new infrastructure benefits the community and dignifies the population, it does not resolve issues of social segregation, stigmatization and racism.
Words:
Tsigani, the Bulgarian word for gypsies, is largely a derogatory term used against the gypsy population of Bulgaria. However, some Bulgarian gypsies embrace the word as a means of identifying with their culture. Roma, a word that takes root from the gypsy language, is the more politically correct term presently used to refer to this minority population. The word Roma is becoming more ever-present than the English word gypsies, as this word is racist and contains negative connotation.