Experts on the defensive: The Tsiganologue versus Romani activism (1959-1973)

This article discusses the figure of the Tsiganalogue, the expert on the “Tsigane question,” in post-World War II France. Specifically, it analyses the role played by one of these experts in the police persecution of Roma ethnic activism during the 1960s and early 1970s. Drawing on this case study,...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Barrera López, Begoña
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/172828
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/172828
https://doi.org/10.3989/chdj.2024.525
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Tsiganologie
expert knowledge
police
Tsigane
Romani movement
Romani history
saber experto
policía
movimiento Romani
historia Romani
Descripción
Sumario:This article discusses the figure of the Tsiganalogue, the expert on the “Tsigane question,” in post-World War II France. Specifically, it analyses the role played by one of these experts in the police persecution of Roma ethnic activism during the 1960s and early 1970s. Drawing on this case study, its objective is two-fold: firstly, to show the central role that Tsiganalogues played in the hounding of the Romani movement; secondly, to explain how the self-perceptions of these experts (of their authority and role) were a decisive factor in their interventions with the public authorities. The article draws on a wide range of sources from the French Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Health and Population. It is structured in five parts: the first briefly defines and explains the concepts of expert, expert knowledge, and ethnicity; the second describes the context and profile of the main agents studied (the Tsiganalogues, Romani activists, and the French police); the third and fourth parts examine in extenso the primary documentation; and finally, the fifth part offers a reflective summary of the profile of the Tsiganalogue.