The Roma of Europe

Event offered by:
Foreign Policy Association
Consulate General of Hungary

Event Details

Date:
Thursday, May 6, 2010
8:30 AM - 2:00 PM 
Location:
Consulate General of Hungary
227 East 52nd Street
New York, NY
Event type
Lunch / Dinner  

Event Transcripts and Video

The Foreign Policy Association and the Consulate General of Hungary present a special conference on the Roma of Europe.

The Roma are one of Europe's largest ethnic minorities with a population of about 10-12 million living in a number of Member States of the European Union. Roma communities have been present in Europe since the Middle Ages. However, Roma remain insufficiently understood and insufficiently integrated into the mainstream of the majority of societies from the Pyrenees to the Carpathians.

They are tainted by stereotypes and prejudices that manifest themselves in the form of economic, social and political discrimination. Steps are being taken at European and national levels to change this situation and support Roma inclusion. Are these adequate? Where has Europe failed in the past? What are the challenges to integrating this population into a united Europe? The conference aims to create a better understanding of the situation of Roma across Europe. It will also help to identify “policies that work” in promoting inclusion and highlight the plight of Roma communities.

AGENDA

8:30 – 9:00 AM

Registration: Coffee and refreshments are served

9:00 – 9:10 AM

Opening Remarks: Amb. Viktor Polgár, Consul General, Republic of Hungary

9:10 - 9:20 AM

Remarks by Daniel L. Nadel, Office of Africa and Europe, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, U.S. Department of State

9:20 - 9:30 AM

Remarks by Rabbi Arthur Schneier, Founder and President, Appeal of Conscience Foundation

9:30 – 10:30 AM

Panel 1: The Roma Predicament: Taking Stock, Looking Ahead

Moderator:

Prof. W. Michael Reisman, Myres S. McDougal Professor of Law, Yale Law School

Panelists:

Prof. Ian Hancock, Director, Romani Archives and Documentation Center, University of Texas at Austin

Prof. Julia Szalai, Senior Research Fellow, Center for Policy Studies, Central European University

Prof. Siegfried Wiessner, Director, Graduate Program for Intercultural Human Rights, St. Thomas University School of Law

10:30 –10:40 AM

Break

10:40 –11:40 AM

Panel 2: Can it be done? Best Practices in Minority Integration

Moderator:

Robert Nolan, Editor-in-Chief of New Media, Foreign Policy Association

 

Panelists:

Anna Csongor, Director, Autonomia Foundation

Kevin Gover, Director, National Museum of the American Indian

George Khaldun, Chief Administrative Officer, Harlem Children's Zone

11:40 – 12:40 PM:

Panel 3:Issues and Solution: National Vs. International Agendas

Moderator:

Holly Cartner, Executive Director, Europe and Central Asia Division, Human Rights Watch

Panelists:

G. Michael Eisenstadt, Director of International Conference, Appeal of Conscience Foundation

12:40 – 2:00 PM

Closing Remarks and Buffet Lunch

Amb. Viktor Polgár, Consul General, Republic of Hungary

 

Opening Remarks

 

 

Panel I

 

 

Panel II

 

 

Panel III

 

 

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