When a Romani falls, the tribe lifts them up

A look into Roma culture's safety net of care

Little Nicky, holding onto his cousin, Sadik, on a bike | Picture by Martina Petkova

Little Nicky was born deaf and mute, into a Roma tribe living in poverty. Nobody in the tribe knew sign language. He could not be signed up for any type of day care and the time to start school was approaching fast. To make Nicky eligible for a school for children with hearing problems, his parents needed to get a mountain of documents in order. To get Nicky hearing aids, something his parents couldn’t afford but the government could fund, again, his parents needed to get a mountain of documents in order. In the meantime, Nicky was growing up in a world of silence.

One day in the summer of 2021, Martina was out with Nicky and his mother, Hota, on yet another journey through institutions, trying to get the official document confirming that Nicky indeed has hearing problems.

During our long day of walking and traveling from building to building, we also stopped by the 9-story housing center where many fami…