Life in Slovakia’s Roma slums: Poverty and segregation
May 10, 2017
Institutional racism, unemployment and poor housing are among the hardships endured by Slovakia’s half-a-million Roma.
Jarovnice, Slovakia – Slipshod huts and sagging shacks line both sides of the quiet river that bisects the densely populated Roma slum in the centre of Jarovnice, an impoverished village in the Sabinov district of eastern Slovakia.
On a cold morning in March, speeding cars bounce along muddy paths, drivers navigating one pothole after another and dodging children who have nowhere to play but the streets.
A rickety steel bridge connects the two sides of the slum and serves as a meeting place for children returning from school.
Martin Kaleja Januv, a 33-year-old teaching assistant, is one of the few residents of Jarovnice with a paying job. The Roma population’s 97 percent unemployment rate renders most locals entirely dependent on welfare, according to the local municipality’s estimates.
