Romani

Persecuted Victims

The Forgotten People

Romani people were consistently targeted by the Nazi regime, yet their genocide was ignored by scholars and researchers until the 1980s. There aren’t too many details about the genocide of Romani people and testimonies can often be contradictory.

The killings of Romani people started later than that of the Jewish people. At the same time, the European community lost less people when compared to Jews.

The concept behind the Nazi policy was to maintain racial hygiene, a different explanation for the selective breeding solution he proposed.

While constantly discriminated, some communities in Germany, such as the Sinti and Lalleri, managed to escape deportation and death. However, other groups faced the merciless attitude of the Nazi regime.

Many of them were deported to Jewish ghettos around Europe. Later on, mass shooting and death camps decimated the community. It’s estimated than 250,000 to 500,000 Romani people were killed during the Holocaust.

Items

Learn More About Romani

Pipe

This pipe was picked up from Asperg, Germany in the spring of 1940. Around 500 Romani people were arrested and taken to the Hohenasperg prison. The pipe was found on the way from the prison to the train station. All prisoners were deported to camps in Poland. Christine saved it as a souvenir, but kept it in the family over the years as a war relic.

· Donated anonymously

Lace

In 1941, around 5,000 Romani people were deported from Austria to the Łódź Ghetto in Poland. Those who survived were sent to Chelmno, Poland, where they were gassed with carbon monoxide. This piece of lace was found in the apartment block where they were housed in the Łódź Ghetto. It was kept by a Jewish tailor called Henryk, one of the 877 surviving Jews.

· Donated anonymously

Spokeshave

This spokeshave was found in the remains of a Romani camp close to Berlin after the Nazi regime arrested and deported most people living there. It’s unknown what happened to the deportees, but they were most likely killed. As locals searched the place later, they found and kept a few things that looked useful. This spokeshave ended up in a local carpenter’s shop.

· Donated by Katrin Lindner

Many More Items

Our collection has countless other items to display. We are currently in the process of saving donations to open a physical museum, so we can display the entire collection. Any donation through the button below will be greatly appreciated and can help us preserve the memory of the Holocaust alive. Thank you.