Anna-Nicole Heinrich

Video address on the European Holocaust Remembrance Day for Sinti and Roma August 2, 2021

Presidènto Romani Rose, Ranǎlen aj Rajalen, Avdives si o Evroputno Dives e Samudaripnasqe Seravipnasqo vaś o Sìnte ta o Rroma. Akava seravel amen odoja dukh savi naśti te mothovdǒl aj te halǒvel pes o bimanuśikane dukhavimàta so sas kerde p-o Sìnte ta o Rroma. Deśa mìje lenqe sas mudarde and-o livnǎ e gazosqe and-o Auschwitz-Birkenau. Biginde manuśa sas viktìme e Samudaripnasqe And-i Evròpa astardi e nazistenθar. Avdives si jekh dives rovipnasqo. Ov seravel vaś amaro vaxt o rovimàta, o jasva, o dukkha e manuśenqe o bangipe so marda len, ʒi k-o samudaripe. vaś amaro vaxt. Rovas tumença vaś o mudarde ʒuvlǎ aj murśa, o tikne ta o purane manuśa. Dukhaça dikhas i monstruozitèta and-i planifikàcia te nićhardǒl o manuśikano ʒivipe aj avel amenqe źal vaś sa odovo so kerdilo e manuśenqe odolesqe so len dikhle len sar verver aj avrutne avrićhudime ta persekutome Avel amenqe źal vaś o malavimàta so lenqe ćhaja aj lenqe ćhave, lenqe purćhave aj lenqe purćhaja, dikǎren ande lenθe pànda avdives. Aj amen sar i Evangelìko Khangeri and-i Germània kamas te naisaras o avdusno khetanipe e Sintenqo community of Sinti aj e Rromenqo odolesqe so on putarde amare jakha te dikhas sode si pharo te oves kotar jekh minoritèta pala savi pànda isi odoborkha but anglapatǎpe. Ake sosqe akava dives rovipnasqo si phandlo jekhe bare angaźaciaça vaś o prezènto ta o avutnipe. Odolesqe so, "i avdives, o anticiganìzmo si jekh bari problèma vaś sa o dostipe and-i Germània". Akaja isi i śokànto konklùzia kaj aresli i Biumblavdi Komìsia e Anticiganizmesqi, savi si dini mandàti kotar o Federàlo Germaniaqo Parlamènti ande laqo rapòrto so dias k-o śird e ćhonesqo Baredivaj. Sarbarrǎras tumen sar kerdam vi o nakhlo berś ande jekh khetani vizìta k-o Auschwitz kaj amen and-i Evangelìko Khangeri and-i Germània - dikhindoj sar barǒl o racìzmo aj o nacionalìzmo – ka terdǒvas mamuj lesθe tumença vaś o demokratìko thagaripe e thamǎqo, aj mamuj o anticiganìzmo, o antisemitìzmo aj sa o fòrme e tacizmesqe Akava si les ande lesθe vi i edukàcia, o buxlǎripe e ʒanipnasqo pal-i història e Sintenqi aj e Rromenqi aj o pinʒaripe lenqo sar jekh nacionàlo minoritèta. Aj trebul vi te vazdas o ʒanipe pal o kàuze aj o efèkte e anticiganizmosqe. Akate amen dikhas amen vi pe amenθe korkorre. Amen kamas te keras buti kaj o Sìnte aj o Rroma te śaj len kotor barabare hakajença ande amare khangerǎ ta amaro dostipe - aj vi maj but, kaj akava te śaj dikhel pes aj te śaj xaćarel pes. Si vasno te keras praktìko àkcia mamuj sa o anticiganìsto anglapatǎmàta. Akaja si jekh vasni lèkcia so savorresikavdam kotar i història. Thavdal amen das dumo i vasni buti so kerel i drakhin “Sìnte aj Rroma taj khangerǎ”, partikular k-i umal e edukaciaqi, e medinqi aj i buti pal o seravipe. Vi akaja si jekh angaźàcia. A opral sa, sartovel, aj kamas te das ćalno pe akava, amenqe akaja kooperàcia si sar jekh baro denipe, vaś savo naisaras tumen ilesθar.

Today is the European Holocaust Memorial Day for Sinti and Roma. It commemorates the inconceivable suffering and inhuman cruelty inflicted on Sinti and Roma. Tens of thousands of them were murdered in the gas chambers of Auschwitz-Birkenau, countless became victims of the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Europe.

Today is a day of lamentation. It carries the cries, the weeping, the despair of the people about the the despair of the people about the suffered injustice up to the genocide to us, into our time.

We mourn with you for the murdered women and men, children and old people. We lament the monstrosity with which human lives were systematically destroyed. And mourn for everything that was done to people because they were marked as different and foreign, marginalized and persecuted.

We sympathize with the wounds that your daughters and sons, grandchildren and granddaughters still carry within them to this day. And we, as the Evangelical Church in Germany, would like to thank today’s community of Sinti and Roma: Because you have opened our eyes to the fact how difficult it is to belong to a minority that many people still encounter with massive prejudice.

Therefore, this day of lamentation is also connected with a great obligation for the present and future.

Because antiziganism is still a major problem for society as a whole in Germany. This is the shocking conclusion reached by the report of the Independent Commission on Antiziganism, which was commissioned by the German Bundestag and presented at the beginning of June.

We assure you, as we did last year during our joint visit to Auschwitz: As the Protestant Church in Germany, we will stand together with you for our democratic constitutional state in the face of increasing racism and nationalism – against antiziganism, anti-Semitism and all forms of racism. This also includes educational work: education about the history of the Sinti and Roma and about their recognition as a national minority. And it includes raising awareness about what the causes and effects of antiziganism are.

In doing so, we also look at ourselves. We want to work actively to ensure that Sinti and Roma can participate in our churches and in our society on an equal footing – and even more: that this also becomes perceptible and visible. It is important to counter any anti-Gypsy prejudice in a concrete way. This is an important learning experience for all of us.

That is why we support the important work of the network “Sinti and Roma and Churches”, especially in the areas of education, media and remembrance work. This is also an obligation for us, but above all, we would like to tell you explicitly, we experience this cooperation as a great gift. For this we thank you from the bottom of our hearts