‘We have a long way to go’: How Spain’s gypsies are trying to break through the glass ceiling

Susana Martinez Heredia grew up in a notorious part of Barcelona that tourists never see. open image in gallery Susana Martinez Heredia standing next to a statue of Camaron de la Isla in La Mina “None of my classmates at Esade had ever met a gypsy; they did not know anything about our lives. “We seem to make progress, then take a step back.” Roma were not recognised as equal citizens in Spain until the 1978 constitution restored democracy after the death of Franco three years earlier. Sometimes they did not have the money so had to beg to delay payments.” It is great that I am representing the gypsy community but this has only come after 600 years of prejudice Beatriz Carrillo de los Reyes, MP Today there are an estimated 10 million Roma across Europe, according to the UN. We seem to make progress – then take a step back Susana Martinez Heredia “When I rented a flat the landlord said he was glad a nice girl like me had rented the place ‘and not a bunch of gypsies’!” Carrillo believes that the media does little to dispel the popular myths about gypsies that they are either criminals or do nothing but throw huge, garish weddings.