Today is International Romani Day
So let's listen to a song.
In April 1971, Roma representatives from 9 countries across 3 continents gathered at the first World Romani Congress in London and made some decisions.
Official Roma flag
An official flag for all Roma people was adopted, representing the heavens, the earth, and a 16-spoked mandala that symbolizes both the Indian origins of the Romani and a caravan wheel. The Romani don’t believe God belongs to them or that the land - any land - belongs to them. However, they do feel that they belong to the Sky and the Earth, as equals to any other living being. This belief and mindset is partially behind the name of our publication, as you can read in our About section.
Replacing “Gypsy” with “Roma”
Why is that important and necessary? Put simply, “Roma” comes from the Romanes language and is a self-descriptor. “Gypsy” and all other variants are terms used by outsiders to describe the Romani. Read a little bit more about this here.
The official Roma anthem Djelem, Djelem
The Wikipedia article about this so…
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