t z i g a n e s


I spent two afternoons in a defacto refugee camp for Romanian
tziganes in Nanterre ( a suburb of Paris ) in April of 1993 for
the now-defunct, English-language Paris City Magazine.

More than 800 Romanian tziganes or Roms fled their country at the 
fall of the Ceaucescu regime and the precipitating pogroms of the
Timisora region to find themselves coralled between the sandy berms of
a vacant lot in Nanterre.

The local government supplied no sanitation or toilet services and but
one water spigot to serve the entire camp. Medical care was supplied
by Doctor's Without Borders on a weekly visit. The evident
intention of the local authorities was to be to make life as
uncomfortable as possible for the refugees in order to inspire them to
move elsewhere.

The camp was located under the trestle for the local suburban commuter
train and so it was visible to thousands of persons per day for more
than 2 years.


Click an image below to see it large.

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