As part of this commemoration, Barcelona City Council and the associations of the Municipal Council for the Roma People are holding an event in memory of one of the darkest and least well known chapters in the history of the Roma people.

In the summer of 1749, there was an attempt to exterminate the Roma People in Spain. The plan was orchestrated by the Marquis de la Ensenada, and targeted both men and women, as well as the elderly and even children, and resulted in the arrest of between 9,000 and 12,000 Gypsies. They remained in prison until 1765, when Charles III proclaimed their pardon, although after 14 years it was too late for many of them, who had already died as a result of the insanitary conditions in the prisons and the harshness of forced labour.

Despite the seriousness of these events, they are still little known today, which is why Barcelona City Council and the organisations of the Municipal Council of the Roma People are organising a talk with experts to address the issue. Historian and writer Manuel Martínez and Roma activist and social mediator Francisca Perona will be contributing their knowledge, from the point of view of history and restorative justice with a gender perspective, at the talk “Past and present of anti-Roma sentiment with a gender perspective”, which will be followed by an open discussion with the audience.

During the event, a wreath will be laid in memory of the Gypsy women imprisoned during the Great Gypsy Round-up of 30 July 1749 in Barcelona, with an artistic contribution from Falete Perona (guitarist) and Gema Amaya (dancer).

The commemoration marks the events of the Great Gypsy Round-up, an attempt to exterminate the Roma people, and reaffirms the rights and the struggle against anti-Roma sentiment, and also spotlighting Roma history and culture.

The event will take place on 29 July at 6.30 pm at the Convent de Sant Agustí Civic Centre, a space that has been chosen due to its symbolism, as it was one of the places in the city where Roma women and their children were imprisoned.

The ceremony will be attended by the Chair of the Municipal Council of Roma People and the Councillor for Democratic Memory and the District of Ciutat Vella, Jordi Rabassa, along with the First Vice-chair of the Municipal Council for the Roma People, and Chair of the Gràcia Roma Youth Association, Ricard Valentí.

Anyone wishing to attend and take part in the activity, which is free and has limited capacity, must register in advance by sending an email to cmpgb@bcn.cat

Programme

6.30 pm: Welcome and presentation by Ricard Valentí, First Vice-chair of the Municipal Council for the Roma People and chair of the Gràcia Roma Youth Association, and Jordi Rabassa, chair of the Municipal Council for the Roma People and the Councillor for Democratic Memory and the District of Ciutat Vella.

6.40 pm:Talk, “The past and present of anti-Roma sentiment with a gender perspective”, Sala Noble at the Convent de Sant Agustí Civic Centre.

7.45 pm: Screening of the video “The history of the Great Gypsy Round-up and the plan to exterminate the Roma people”, presented by the Rromane Siklovne Association.

8 pm.:Ceremony in remembrance of the victims of the Great Round-up, cloister at the Convent de Sant Agustí Civic Centre.

We look forward to seeing you at the event.