Healing Hidden Identities- Roma Holocaust Exhibition

Remembrance of the Roma Genocide and healing through the arts Remembrance through Arts, poetry, storytelling and oral history is a unique way to remember the mass killing of Roma people during the Holocaust. The Roma Genocide (Roma Holocaust- Pharrajimos), where an estimated 250,000-500,000 Romani and Sinti were killed by the Nazi Germans and their collaborators. The Roma community have migrated from Northern India over 1,000 years ago due to persecution and have moved throughout the world as they have tried to survive the Anti-Gypsyism and Romaphobia the community faces. In Sheffield there is an estimated 8,000 Roma families in the city and many have left their homelands with the hope of a better future. Also, among the community, the young people have family members that were survivors of the Holocaust and also elders that fought in the war. This exhibition brings together a number of Roma young people, families and artists to remember and honour the Roma Genocide. We asked ourselves and our community members to reflect on cultural trauma and to consider using the arts to help us heal past and current tensions.
Some questions we considered through the workshops included:
-As Roma people, do we feel the need to hide our Roma culture and identity?
-How does this play out in the everyday? Why do we hide this part of ourselves? -What happens when we encounter our hidden identities?
-Can arts and culture help us heal and explore these sides of ourselves?
-Why is it important to remember our elders?
-Why is it important to remember our past?
-What does the Roma Genocide mean to you?
The exhibition allows you to explore the Hidden Histories ‘tree’ installation, reflecting on the Roma Holocaust and also invites you to contribute to the tree by remembering someone from your past. We encourage people to stop and notice any sensations, feelings, memories and thoughts they might have on the Roma Genocide or any other moment that emerges. We are mindful that trauma is real and can be triggered in a number of ways, therefore we want to ensure you are also feeling supported. Please do reach out to a team member should you feel the need to talk through anything that arises.
Healing Hidden Identities was commissioned by the Migration Matters Festival, co-produced by Rosa Cisneros and Terezia Rostas, developed with Roma young people and families and pulled in established Roma artists from Europe. The exhibition is part of the Welcoming Cultures event produced by Terezia Rostas, Roma cultural consultant and founder of Care for Young People’s Future with support from Roots and Futures - University of Sheffield, Sheffield City Council, RosaSenCis Film Production Company and Sheffield Museums. Content Warning: The exhibition will contain info about the Roma Genocide, which may cause upset. The exhibition has been created with young people and Roma families in Sheffield, UK. www.cypf.org.uk