Advocacy Representation and Resistance

Abstract

This article offers the case study of two nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that have tailored and improved their communication efforts so that politicians, governments, and international organizations hear, and do something about, the plight of the Roma, the most discriminated against European minority. This study examines advocacy publications and describes the discursive repertoire available to European NGOs working for Roma rights post-Communism. The analysis suggests that advocacy communication is fraught with imperfections and therefore resistance takes the shape of ambivalent discourses, both strong and ambiguous, and nonetheless disrupting fixed representations that have motivated historic and contemporary anti-Gypsyism; at the same time, it concludes that the movement for Roma rights is in need of clearer organizational and political mobilization if it is to succeed in the model of other vibrant social movements.