Produced and photographed a photo essay documenting Roma life in Romania. Working in several villages, we gained access through developing trust relationships with local communities. Roma have a long history of being targeted for racial violence. Many of their children are automatically placed in separate educational facilities, if they are allowed to attend school. A nomadic people by nature, Roma live quite unsettled lives, always in transit and outdoors. Roma girls are also the victims of human trafficking. While in southern Romania, one local pastor stated that 70% of the girls in his communities are trafficked out as child prostitutes. If they girls survive past puberty, they are left to find their way home, often drug addicted and suffer permanent physical damaged.
Melanie Mahoney 