"I cannot imagine my life being in someone else's hands." How Slovo 21 introduces the Romani Holocaust to students

It is one of the darkest chapters of modern history, yet children in schools are rarely taught about the Romani Holocaust. Slovo 21 is trying to change that, at least in part. Through a special educational program, they are bringing a long-overlooked topic into the classroom—sensitively, humanely, and without oversimplification. Lecturer Žofie Látalová and Zdeněk Daniel, a descendant of survivors, introduce children to the real stories of Romani families from the former Czechoslovakia who were scarred by the war. At the same time, students have the opportunity to talk about their own feelings and ask questions that may not have occurred to them before. 

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A slightly different history lesson

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It is foggy in Tuchlovice, near Kladno. We park the car in front of the elementary school. The children are already in their classrooms by now, and the second period is about to start. A smiling teacher greets us in the schoolyard. She teaches Czech and history at the Tuchlovice school. She leads us up the stairs to a classroom of ninth-graders who are about to have a slightly different program than usual. Žofie Látalová and Zdeněk Daniel introduce themselves. A trained Romani studies expert, Žofie is acting as the program's lecturer today. Zdeněk is an artist and a descendant of Romani Holocaust survivors. His father’s family came from Oslavany near Brno and were among the affluent Moravian Roma. A large part of his family died in concentration camps. 

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The program, organized by Slovo 21, focuses on raising awareness about the Romani Holocaust. It shares real stories with children and provides the necessary context. The teacher agrees, noting that the ninth-graders are just beginning to cover World War II in history, so the program ties in well with what they already know. This makes it easy for the children to arrange facts on a timeline from the founding of Czechoslovakia to the end of World War II. They also add events that are new to many of them to the timeline, such as the beginning and end of the concentration camps in Lety u Písku and Hodonín u Kunštátu.  

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Trauma turned into paintings 

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"My father told me his story when I was in elementary school, and that’s how I learned what happened during World War II. I was left with trauma. Based on that, I created these ten paintings," Zdeněk Daniel shows the children. Together with Žofie, they hang several paintings from Zdeněk’s *Memento Mori* series on the board. The children carefully observe the more or less abstract scenes, full of gray and gloom. In a circle, they then share with the others what emotions they take away from the paintings.

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"I feel aversion and fear from it because I can't imagine my life being in someone else's hands. So, I guess helplessness, too," one of the girls explains. Other children join in with similar feelings of fear or aversion. "A person paints to convey information, to evoke emotions in other people," Zdeněk adds. The children are now about to face a similar task. Zdeněk hands out colored charcoal and drawing paper. Their task is to capture an emotion they associate with Christmas in just a few minutes. When the time is up, they share a surprisingly diverse range of positive and negative feelings. "You are at an age where you are encountering reality more," Žofie adds. "Some things are no longer just simply positive."

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Survivor stories: beyond school workshops, there are also exhibitions and theater

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After the final activity, the second period is quickly drawing to a close. There is only time left for feedback in a circle. The children appreciate the unique story they were able to hear from Zdeněk. The teacher also evaluates the program positively. "I was pleasantly surprised by how the children communicated and developed their thoughts." She also adds how important she considers knowledge of modern history: "We structure it so that we have time for modern history in the ninth grade. Around Christmas, we teach World War II, and we dedicate the second semester to modern history up to the present day. It’s a terrible shame when children go off to high school and start with prehistory all over again." 

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The Romani Holocaust is as inseparable from the history of the twentieth century as any other wartime atrocity, yet it has long remained on the periphery of public attention in the Czech Republic. Together with the Museum of Romani Culture, Slovo 21 is working to change this through the Survivors' Stories project, which shares authentic testimonies. In addition to educational programs, the project includes an exhibition and a theatrical performance that gives a voice to the descendants of survivors, bringing their family histories back into the public sphere. Because without understanding the past, it is impossible to understand the present. And stories that have been silenced for too long should not be forgotten. 

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This report was produced as part of the Survivors' Stories project, supported by the Foundation Remembrance, Responsibility and Future (EVZ).

This text does not represent the opinion of the EVZ Foundation. The author is responsible for all claims contained within this text.

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