April 8 is the International Day of Roma, recognized as a day of unity for the Roma people world wide.
BBC's photos of Roma life are indicative of the problems Roma people face, and those they have face throughout history. The Roma are traditionally marginalized both literally - living on the outskirts of cities in extremy low-quality housing or told their children must attend separate schools - and figuratively - their population uncountable and demographics sketchy at best.
The Roma today must deal with social problems, poverty, illiteracy, and inadequate government representation. Roma throughout history have faced these problems, and more. They were targeted by Nazis and were victims of concentration camps. Prejudices from past centuries still remain, which means that what little communication occurs between the Roma and the societies amongst which they live is often negative. Prevailing ignorance about this minority group widens social rifts and gives the Roma little incentive to "conform" to mainstream lifestyles.
