The survivors of Auschwitz are now remembering the indescribable sufferings and murders of the Sinti and Roma prisoners in the gas chambers of Auschwitz and Birkenau. Just like the Jews of Europe, the Sinti and Roma peoples were scheduled to be extinguished from the face of the earth.

Tomorrow, 75 years after the murder of 4,300 Sinti and Roma people in Birkenau, guests from around the world will be gathering at the Auschwitz Memorial for an act of remembrance. They will be remembering together with Romani Rose, Chair of the Central Council of German Sinti and Roma, and other representatives of those murdered. Guests include the American civil rights activist Jesse Jackson and, as representatives of the International Auschwitz Committee (IAC), the Auschwitz survivors Eva Fahidi from Budapest and Marian Turski from Warsaw.

In Berlin, on the eve of the remembrance ceremony, the Executive Vice President of the IAC Christoph Heubner said:

“On this day of remembrance, there is a mixture of profound sorrow with a sense of anger and shame that today, Sinti and Roma in many European countries are still being treated with incessant, everyday contempt, marginalization and violence. We expect, especially from the new EU Commission, that they place this increasing scandal at the top of their agenda and prioritize this indefensible situation in their work.”