Perceived Ethnic Discrimination Experiences of Romani Women in Turkey

Authors : Maviş YILDIRIM, Dilek MURAT, Zeynep Aca

Pages : 29-47

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Publication Date : 2016-02-08

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :The biggest and most problematic ethnic group suffering from poverty and racism in Europe, the Romani people are “the others” who have been marginalized and left to their fate also in Turkey. The women members of this group are more vulnerable to multiple discrimination and thus, constitute the one of the most disadvantaged group of the society. The Romani people have almost no intellectual accumulation in Turkey or in Europe. They have almost no non-governmental organizations to fight for their economic, political and social rights, either. Therefore, until recently they have been either left alone to solve their problems on their own or abandoned to the justice of political power.   The purpose of this study is to detect the perceived ethnic discrimination experiences of Romani women who live in Turkey but about whom there are no scientific data.  In addition to this, the study also examines the effects of perceived discrimination experiences on group members’ self-esteem and hopelessness. The scales used to collect quantitative data are The Perceived Ethnic Discrimination Questionnaire, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale and Beck Hopelessness Scale. The study was conducted in Bursa, the fourth biggest city in Turkey.
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