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Article: Gypsies face oppression, racism after fall of communism.(Originated from Knight-Ridder Newspaper)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- December 9, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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POSTOLOPRTY, Czech Republic _ Emil Synu lives amid the crumbling castles of a once-great empire and considers himself, at least for now, one lucky Gypsy: He hasn't been beaten, set on fire or chased into a river and drowned.
But each day he opens his door, Synu said, he becomes a target for neo-Nazis and skinheads staging a campaign of fear that has shaken a nation known for its peace and its poet president. Synu even fondly remembers the oppressive days of communism when Eastern Europe's centuries-old ethnic hatreds were muffled by the state.
``Today the Nazi mentality is back,'' said Synu, a carpenter with calloused hands and glints of gray ...