International Romani Day
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Secretary Kerry commemorates International Romani Day: 8th of April 2013
Secretary of State John Kerry United States Department of State 2013-04-07 On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I want to send the best wishes to all of the Roma on International Romani Day. We celebrate the celebration of rich Roma culture and diverse contributions of Roma to our society. On this day, we have to think about the obstacles that continue to prevent millions of Roma from realizing their potential. Roma continue to face wide discrimination in access to education, employment, housing and healthcare. In recent years the global economic crisis has slowed the progress in addressing these problems and led to the growth of anti-Roma rhetoric and even more alarmingly to violence. Walling off some Roma villages from neighboring regions and the eviction of entire communities of Roma families from their homes clearly illustrates their exclusion and isolation. We cannot ignore such deeply disturbing events. No nation can meet the challenges of the 21st century with a large segment of the population being illiterate and excluded. The United States reaffirm their determination to carry out this task together with the European governments, the civil society and international organizations such as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in order to ensure equality of opportunity with the inclusion of all Roma. |
Secretary Kerry commemorates International Romani Day: (doc) » |