In Romania, historians are working on integrating optional courses on the history of the Roma to be offered to middle and high school students. The module aims to deepen understanding of the slavery of this minority, estimated at between 1.5 and 2 million people in the country, according to the Romanian state. Although abolished 170 years ago, forced labor lacks visibility in Romanian schools. However, the start of this teaching, planned for the 2026 school year, may be delayed.
From our correspondent in Bucharest, Guilhem Bernes
Sitting at his desk in Bucharest, sociologist Adrian-Nicolae Furtuna opens an archive book. Inside, the contracts for the sale of Roma slaves unfold: “Look here. This is the case of Craciun, a Rom child, who was sold to three different masters in just two days. You can see the signature and fingerprint at the bottom of the text written in Cyrillic.”
For more than five centuries, slavery of the Roma was practiced in the Romanian principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia. Monasteries, boyars, peasants, all sectors of society used the forced labor of this ethnic minority. The slaves were considered movable property, deprived of rights, leading to beatings, sometimes to death, sexual violence, and children separated from their parents.
This part of history has been forgotten in Romania since the abolition of the system 170 years ago. “I discovered the history of Roma slavery when I was 20 years old. I was a student. When I started my research, I wasn’t chasing sensationalism. But through documentation, I ended up finding information like this,” says Adrian-Nicolae Furtuna. “These documents clearly show how a Romanian peasant could buy a child and then sell them to the monastery they depended on.”
“They need to understand (…) what happened”
Delia Grigorie, an activist and lecturer at the University of Bucharest, is working on the drafting of new textbooks. Since the adoption of a law in July 2023, Romanian middle and high school students can choose dedicated courses on Roma history. The four-year program, still under development, will focus on their slavery: “They need to understand, from a young age, what happened: why the Roma were marginalized and still remain heavily stigmatized today. But also, why they sometimes exclude themselves and have a very low self-esteem. Teaching this history, which is still not taught in schools, is essential. If we pass it on, I am sure that racism will decline.”
But the start of the new course is delayed. The group of experts responsible for drafting the textbooks has submitted its curriculum proposal to the Ministry of Education’s commission. For eight months, researchers have not received any updates. Delia Grigorie mentions a potential start of the course no earlier than the 2027 school year – four years after the law was passed.
Read also: The difficult access of Roma children to education
