Jasmine Dellal is a filmmaker who has produced two films about Gypsy culture: Gypsy Caravan and American Gypsy. I have seen both of them. American Gypsy is about a family in the United States who is Gypsy, and how they try to follow their traditional culture within the framework of modern U.S. culture. Gypsy Caravan (“When the Road Bends…“) follows 5 Romani bands from 4 countries on a USA concert tour, and then visits the musicians’ families in Romania, Macedonia, India and Spain. Critics called it the “Buena Vista Social Club of Gypsy music”, and it showed in festivals and cinemas worldwide.
Jasmine is now committed to an important project that she is raising funding for: she is taking her movie Gypsy Caravan ‘on the road’ in Hungary as an effort to raise cultural consciousness among Gypsies and Eastern Europeans alike about the contributions that the Gypsy people make to our world. The dual purpose of this trip is first, to help the Gypsy people to take pride in their own people, and secondly, to help educate the Eastern Europeans that the Gypsy people have positive contributions to make to their communities. The direct link to her project is http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/830850062/gypsy-caravan-film-on-the-road-in-hungary.
Jasmine writes:
“These days, the news about Roma in Hungary is rarely very cheerful. Amnesty International’s recent report showed that violent attacks and unrelenting discrimination against Roma continue in Eastern Europe. Roma are still denied basic rights like access to housing, employment, and education. Hungary is a tough case, perhaps partly due to the growing influence of “radical right-wing groups” with agendas that are anti-Roma and increasingly anti-Semitic.”
Jamine’s goal is to use this film to challenge ‘Gypsy’ stereotypes — stereotypes so dangerous that there are frequent attacks on Roma purely due to their race. In the past two years, 8 Roma have been lynched in Hungary. Whole villages have been mobbed. Police don’t bother to pursue crimes against Gypsies. Employers openly reject Gypsy job applicants. Kids are kept out of school, a practice which continues even though it is banned by European courts. Adults are barred from shops and nightclubs. Racism is rampant and accepted.
This summer, she is planning to travel through Hungary using the film Gypsy Caravan to challenge the way people think. One of the best modern weapons against prejudice is film. When the film Gypsy Caravan screened in Bulgaria, the U.S. ambassador said that the U.S. spends thousands of dollars on Romani minority education projects, “when all we should really do is show this film — it makes non-Roma see ‘Gypsies’ as humans and forces us to face our own prejudice.” Gypsy Caravan was used in Transylvania to inspire grassroots change in both the way non-Gypsy people view the Gypsies, and the way that Gypsies view themselves. The film helps Gypsy people to feel proud and fight for justice. Gypsy Caravan is not a classic educational film, but it has proven a great tool for starting conversations and inspiring people.
Jasmine’s campaign has received funding from Open Society Institute, the foundation started by George Soros (Hungarian by origin). She needs to raise $8000 herself by the campaign deadline in order to qualify for the funding from Open Society Institute.