European Roma policy – Mission (im)possible

The article discusses different approaches in European policies towards Roma. It starts with discussing the current situation and controversial issue of defining the target of these policies and related terminology. Then the two basic paradigms, the exoticization and marginalisation, within which the Roma are placed are reflected, as well as their cross-cuttings and their impact on nowadays’ social practice and policies. An analysis of major problems arising from these socio-ideological paradigms within which the Roma are placed in the last circa 20 years of transition in Eastern Europe is made and some of the basic reasons of policy failures are disclosed. Certainly, all countries in this region and their Romani communities are unique and have specific characteristics, but there are enough common features and models (both from the point of view of policies, programs and projects implemented by various actors on supranational, national, local level), which enable us to examine the problem in a general and generalizing way.