Strengthening Romani Voices in Colombia: Reflections on a Participatory Approach

Latin America’s diverse Romani populations are seldom represented in policy debates, and frequently misrepresented in popular culture and the mainstream media. In Colombia, the Proceso Organizativo del Pueblo Rrom de Colombia (Organizational Process of the Roma People of Colombia, Prorrom), among other organisations, was established to promote Romani inclusion in the country’s multicultural policies. But despite legal recognition of Romani populations in Colombia, their identity continues to be framed officially in aesthetic terms that reinforce prevailing stereotypes. This article reflects on our collaboration with Prorrom in the design and delivery of two workshops in Bogotá, where 32 appointed Romani cultural mediators are hired by the District Secretaries and other official institutions to provide input around census-taking and policy actions. Although government agencies rely on Romani mediators for decision-making, the mediators receive little if any training for their role, and often find it difficult to overcome stereotypes that stigmatise or exoticise. Our collaborative workshops addressed this problem, creating spaces for the co-creation of tools and resources to better engage with government bodies, strengthening Romani capacity to better advocate for inclusion and anti-racism. The article offers a brief history of Romani presence in Colombia, and an outline of the specific issues Romani populations face in the country. We then examine the problems identified by Romani mediators, which our collaborative workshops addressed. Finally, we explore how Romani participants viewed the collaborative process and its outcome, in their own words, and reflect on our own learning.