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Intervention in the area of education
Intervention in the area of education
1.
Jaen.
Education.
Direct discrimination.
A Roma boy and a non-Roma girl at a secondary school in Jaen were
punished for having sent a WhatsApp video to their classmates.
The parents of the Roma boy tried to arrange a meeting with the director and head teacher that same day but
were unsuccessful. The next day they again tried to speak with them about the video incident. The parents told
us that they did not agree with the way their son was treated and felt it discriminatory that their son was given
a different punishment than the non-Roma girl: their son was not allowed to go on a class trip planned for the
next day while the non-Roma girl was kept in from recess that day.
The Department suggested that the local FSG office ask to see the internal school regulation to check the ap-
propriateness of the punishments given to the student.
The teachers involved in this case told us that these types of ‘punishments’ are set by the school administrators
and head teachers and they were under no obligation to provide any further explanation.
The parents remain convinced that the difference in punishments was because their son is Roma.
2.
Linares.
Education.
Direct discrimination.
The following case was received at our Linares office:
The father of a non-Roma student in the 6th grade refused to let his son take part in a class in Roma culture
consisting of learning a few words in ‘Caló’. The father explained that he was afraid of the influence that the
Roma culture could have on his son (manifestation of rejection, prejudice and negative stereotypes of the Roma
culture).
The school told us that despite the teacher’s insistence on the importance of intercultural education for young
children, the father refused to see reason. They had no leverage because this was an extra-curricular activity.
The equality Department notes that there are still deep-rooted prejudices and stereotypes against the Roma
community and its culture that most people are not aware of.
3.
Almeria.
Education.
Direct discrimination.
A Roma mother from the province of Almeria told us of the dis-
crimination suffered by her son at the residence hall where he was staying as a student. Her son was accused of
stealing from his room-mate and was expelled from school.
The mother requested an appointment with the school director to sort out the false accusation made against
her son.
The mother also requested the video recordings of the security cameras (allegedly the incident had to have
been taped by those cameras) but was told that they could not do that.
The Department spoke with the mother and the school on several occasions to try to get to the bottom of
this issue.
Not long after that, the director called the mother to apologise and tell her that her son was being readmitted
to the school, that the whole thing was apparently a big misunderstanding.
The mother told us that she was upset because of the shame that she and her son had to suffer. She said that
she was afraid that her son’s classmates would distrust him because of this misunderstanding. The mother was
convinced that the accusation was because they are Roma. Even though the facts were never clarified, she
asked us not to take any further action.