Background 

In 2018 and 2019 Roma communities in Hungary faced multiple crises that impacted their rights and livelihoods. 

First, for a long time there had been hostile marches in Roma settlements by extremist right-wing groups and the general experience of systemic and institutional racism; and in 2020 the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated existing problems in Roma communities such as access to food, livelihoods, education, and healthcare. Access to food was reduced because the price of food rose, because school canteens were closed (for many families the only available cooked food), and because food barrels were not accepted in the village center. Access to a livelihood was reduced because many Roma workers were laid off, especially from temporary jobs, and they did not have a financial reserve. Access to education was reduced because many families did not have the digital equipment, internet access, and digital skills to participate in digital education programmes. Access to medical supplies like masks, gloves and sanitisers was reduced and these items were often not available at the store or too expensive for Roma families. Social distancing was challenging as Roma families often lived in small flats or settlements with high Covid contamination risks. There was a need to provide immediate response to these crises. 

Organizing process:

The Civil College Foundation (CKA) had already been organizing Roma communities in the years prior to the pandemic as one of the social groups that is mostly impacted by systemic racism and discrimination in Hungary and Europe. They had a team of Roma organizers and leaders in different communities who they had been working with and had ongoing relationships and trust within those communities. When the pandemic hit, CKA responded by engaging their Roma organizers to conduct an assessment of the effects of the pandemic on local Roma communities with a focus on disadvantaged settlements. They coordinated crisis response activities including delivering aid packages and vaccination registration. Based on the key issues emerging from the assessment in Roma communities, CKA organized several emergency response campaigns in 2020 and 2021 on access to food, livelihoods, education, healthcare, and Covid vaccination, combining community organizing with digital organizing. One of the most successful campaigns was the “Vaccinate for Life” campaign where CKA played a key role in bringing together the national Roma municipality, Roma NGOs, activist groups, and prominent Roma media to promote vaccination registration. In the campaign, volunteers visited Roma settlements in an effort to overcome skepticism and to help with registration for vaccination. It included a digital organizing component with memes on social media, featuring Roma celebrities as well as health care professionals. Throughout the campaigns, CKA coordinated the strengthening of cooperation among Roma organizers, Roma groups, Roma NGOs, pro-Roma organizations, Roma politicians, Roma media, national Roma municipality, and activist groups to respond to the crisis and curb institutional racism towards Roma people.

Outcomes:

• 108 activists and volunteers were engaged in the campaign “Vaccinate for Life”, reaching and addressing more than 32,000 people in three weeks of action in 14 counties.  
• Roma people, families and communities benefited from different forms of support during Covid-19. More than a thousand families in 12 disadvantaged local communities received aid packages as part of the campaign “One More Bite” in partnership with the digital organizing platform, aHang. 
• 350 children in 20 settlements received IT tools and Internet access in order to access digital education as part of the education campaign – Window to the Desk.
• Citizens donated more than 21 million HUF for the education campaign and 20 million HUF for the “One more bite” campaign to distribute basic non-perishable food items and hygiene products to Roma communities. 
• Segregated communities in more than 70 municipalities in Hungary formed a network around the provision of social assistance, contributed to create a problem map and started addressing the mapped problems in most municipalities. 
• The media covered the campaign. Prominent Roma media covered the national campaign Vaccinate for Life to promote vaccination in Roma communities which brought considerable prestige to the collaboration between NGOs and Roma communities. Mainstream media published articles praising Roma communities who did their part to fight the Covid pandemic, and promoted a positive perception of Roma communities.
• The Hungarian government officially recognised CKA’s ability to mobilize Roma communities for vaccination in slums. People in these communities did not trust government institutions and the Hungarian health care system because of the discrimination they experienced. 

Lessons learned:

• During the Covid-19 pandemic CKA decided to center Roma communities in their organizing during the crisis, as they were the most affected by both systemic racism in Hungary. They were already discriminated against in their access to food, livelihoods, education, and healthcare; and the Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated these issues. Centering them during the crisis contributed to strengthen the credibility of community organizers as present and effective in supporting frontline communities in moments of need. 
• The response to the crisis included both meeting the immediate needs of those communities and building the collective power of Roma communities and actors by creating opportunities for building relationships with new people, volunteers, leaders and organizers who were motivated to take action; strengthening networks and coalitions among Roma organizations that could continue also after the crisis. 
• The organizing campaigns during the crisis also addressed the root causes of racial injustice and discrimination towards Roma communities in Hungary. CKA formed coalitions that would connect issues related to Covid to the goal of curbing institutional racism towards Roma people. Focusing on improving equal access to education and healthcare for Roma communities, as well as influencing the narrative in mainstream media and perceptions in the public of Roma people.

Source

ECON (2023). Organizing in Crisis: A curriculum for community organizers. CC-BY NC-SA 4.0.