Roma Culture 101: Opening Minds With Song, Talk and Laughter
Mr. Spinelli said that Roma have been living in houses in Abruzzo since the 14th century,
As it is, Romani culture is not widely studied in Italy, "unfortunately," said Mr.
Spinelli, who has taught university courses in Trieste and in nearby Chieti.
The Abruzzo region, where Mr. Spinelli lives and where Roma have been widely integrated for centuries, "is not all a
happy valley," said Paolo Ciani, an expert in Roma issues for the Community of Sant’Egidio, a Catholic lay group.
Spinelli said that They’re really an example of racial segregation, a crime against humanity,
And so the roughly dozen participants — including "gadji," or women of non-Roma origin — learned basic expressions
in Romanés, the Romani language spoken in Abruzzo; gobbled up Roma cuisine; and were invited into Romani homes.
" he said. that I am trying to get people to know the unknown side of the Roma, the families
that are integrated, the Roma who work, who are honest, who have lived here for centuries but continue to preserve their culture,
