Maria Manuela Mendes

School pathways and economic practices of Portuguese Ciganos: some continuities and changes

ABSTRACT The main aim of this article is to offer a comprehensive perspective to a better understanding of the actual situation of Portuguese Ciganos.1 In Portugal, the lack of recognition of Ciganos (Roma) and the sometimes incorrect ‘knowledge’ about them which are reflected in images that are limitative and distorted, suggest inferiority and are full of disdain, all of which negatively affects and restricts the life of Ciganos persons. This article intends to presents some of the main results of two qualitative studies conducted between 2004–2010, one of which sought to get to know Ciganos’ representations of domains, practices and situations perceived as discriminatory, while the other looked at the social integration paths of these persons. These studies produce new knowledge about both individual academic and occupational trajectories, and some of the main intergenerational changes that have occurred among Portuguese Ciganos. In addition, the article offers a new view about some social policies in Portugal and its impacts on Ciganos singularities. In fact, it’s possible to conclude that the universalism of the national social policies has not produced the desired effects in terms of a reduction in levels of poverty, exclusion, discrimination among Portuguese Ciganos.

Shaping ways of managing diversity in Portuguese schools, from the student's perspective

This article examines the results of an empirical research project that analysed the political socialisation processes of the students at three Portuguese public secondary schools in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area in 2011. Against the background of the implementation of an ‘education for citizenship’ programme in the official Portuguese school curriculum (2001), the project basically sought to know what attitudes the students mobilised in the face of a hypothetical situation involving the presence of ciganos (gypsies) in a school context. In this respect, and based on a pragmatic and comprehensive perspective, we attempted to test the concept of multiculturality and how it is seen and experienced by the students at these schools. Our aim is to answer the question: In a school context, how do students think the coexistence of gypsies and non-gypsies should be managed? In seeking to answer this question, the methodology that seemed to us most appropriate to this studys objectives is founded on the mobilisation of a scenario-based questionnaire, and to this purpose we surveyed 700 secondary students in a classroom environment. We were able to identify and characterise four possible coexistence formats within the overall framework of a synoptic vision of the available ways of managing a multicultural experience: separation; socialisation; universalism; and co-operation.

Immigrant perceptions of ethnic and racial discrimination: patterns and singularities in a municipality in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area

In Portugal, studies on discrimination against immigrants have focused almost exclusively either on the indigenous population, or on the foreign population. The former have tended to deploy quantitative and extended methodologies, while the latter studies have opted predominantly for qualitative or intensive methodologies, focusing on particular groups. There are few studies in which the immigrant population is extensively surveyed, covering its diverse origins, life trajectories, and social position in the host society. In this analysis we examine the main factors that shape the perceptions of ethnic and racial discrimination among immigrant groups living in the Oeiras municipality in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area. This analysis is based on a quantitative analysis of a survey of 422 immigrants, of whom approximately half reported having been discriminated against since their arrival in Portugal. The study is focused on three main explanations related to predictive variables: sociographic, acculturation/cultural proximity, and opportunities for contact with the autochthonous population. A multivariate logistic regression demonstrates that there is a statistically significant relationship between perceived discrimination and some sociographic variables including cultural proximity, especially for Brazilians.

Representations About Discrimination Practices in the Education System Built by Gypsies (Ciganos) in the Lisbon Metropolitan Area (Portugal)

In Portugal, Gypsies (Ciganos) are categorized as ethnical and minority group, and they are particularly vulnerable to poverty and social exclusion. There is no doubt that they are one of the groups that rise more antipathy among the other Portuguese. In what concerns the “social images” built by the dominant society, there is a negative evaluation of the Gypsies and this image has persisted and resisted so far. Therefore, Gypsy identity and culture are considered marginal. However, the historical discrimination against Gypsies and the existence of a scarce interaction with the non-Gypsy society are some interesting results coming out from a qualitative study finished in 2006 about social representations and emotions that emerged in discriminatory contexts related with the educational system. One of the main objectives of this article is to find how Gypsies represent the school, the formal education, and the social agents that intervene in this educational context, like teachers, other school workers, and other students (non-Gypsies). It is possible to notice some discourses that revealed negative perceptions and rejection feelings incorporated by some Gypsies. They feel that they are treated like “inferior” persons and not recognized by the whole society.

Interdisciplinary Relations Between Social Sciences and Architecture: Tensions, Ambiguities and Complementarities

In this article, we discuss the dilemmas and tensions in the interdisciplinarity (and transdisciplinarity) between architecture and the social sciences in the education of architects. In spite of the bumpy, multifaceted road to be followed and although the “encounter” between architecture and sociology (and anthropology) is marked by misunderstandings, advances and retreats, their collaboration can result in architecture, in training and in practice, as a process of production of active citizenship. Within the framework of these concerns, this discussion is divided into four sections. In the first one, we look at the anthropological nature of architecture and the relationship between space and society. In the second, we discuss the articulations and attempts at closer proximity between architecture and the social sciences, sociology in particular, and anthropology in France and especially in Portugal. In the third section, we address interdisciplinary cooperation between the social sciences and architecture and urbanism in Portugal in the SAAL and BIP/ZIP programmes. Finally, we put forward some suggestions as to how to further this dialogue in terms of teaching, research and intervention.

Social and Spatial Continuities and Differentiations among Portuguese Ciganos: Regional Profiles

Abstract The coexistence of people and societies marked by ethnic, social, cultural, religious and linguistic diversity is a subject that still generates controversies in contemporary societies. The “Ciganos’ situation” is an unavoidable issue that crosses the boundaries of different European countries, which leads to controversy and ambivalence in the so-called multicultural and/or intercultural societies characterised by the principle of universalism. In Portugal, despite the social and economic transformations that have occurred, the problems of exclusion and poverty among Ciganos persist. They are still considered the poorest ethnic group, with the worst housing conditions, lest schooling and the main target of racism and discrimination. The Portuguese Ciganos are not a homogeneous community. The diversity and plurality are not always easy to grasp by the glare generated by the adoption of interpretive perspectives that are reductively linear and deterministic of the Portuguese Ciganos. For the purpose of outlining a national picture of Portuguese Ciganos, a national study was developed that combines both qualitative and quantitative methodological approaches. The central goal of this article is to present the main results obtained through a questionnaire survey carried out to Ciganos persons and to discuss the social and spatial continuities and differentiations among Ciganos in Portugal.

Constrangimentos e oportunidades para a continuidade e sucesso das pessoas Ciganas

Neste artigo analisa-se o impacto de algumas politicas publicas sobre as trajetorias escolares das pessoas ciganas, em situacao de vulnerabilidade social e residentes nas areas metropolitanas de Lisboa e Porto. Atraves de uma pesquisa qualitativa fora evidenciados alguns dos fatores chave que permitem compreender a continuidade escolar e sucesso educativo de pessoas ciganas, bem como alguns processos de (re)configuracao identitaria associados a estes percursos. A continuidade das trajetorias interliga-se com as politicas e programas publicos, mas tambem com outros fatores explicativos inerentes ao individuo ao tipo de apoio do seu grupo familiar, a presenca de figuras de referencia, a importância dos pares e fatores institucionais insitos ao funcionamento da escola publica.