Carmen Baltzar

Carmen Baltzar is a Finnish-Romani writer and filmmaker.

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We should not feel the need to co-opt the BLM movement to bring the plight of Roma to the world’s attention.

People protest during a rally against police in Teplice, Czech Republic, 26 June 2021. Hundreds of people remembered slain Roma, Stanislav Tomas, who died in the city a week ago shortly after being arrested by police. The originally planned commemoration turned into a march to the police station. Police officers intervened on 19 June, because of a fight between two men who were also damaging other people's cars. When the patrol arrived at the scene, one of the men was lying on the ground with apparent injuries, according to police. When the officers approached him, he became aggressive and attacked them, police said. Footage of the arrest shows police officer kneeling at various times on the man's neck and back. A forensic autopsy ruled out a connection between the deaths and the police intervention, but the autopsy report points to drug impairment, a police spokesman said earlier. Officers insist the death was not related to the intervention. The Council of Europe and the Czech branch of the human rights organization Amnesty International have called for a thorough investigation of the incident. EPA-EFE/MARTIN DIVISEK

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