From the Local Contexts to the Political Invisibility

Discussion about the cycles of housing exclusion of the gypsies in Portugal

Abstract

This article aims to contribute to the reflection and evaluation of the persistence of the precarious housing situation of the Portuguese Roma throughout the ages. In this sense, the main factors exogenous to the Roma population will be analyzed, which may justify the perpetuation of situations of housing exclusion. From a framework on the dimension of this phenomenon, these factors are explained through three axes: l) discourses that are technically and scientifically unsubstantiated to justify housing precariousness and political inaction, where nomadism appears as a common denominator, emphasizing the presence of itinerant Gypsies, even if they are not present; 2) local public strategies for non-fixation and forced mobility; 3) the lack of translation of the problems and needs felt locally in the successive National Action Plans for Inclusion and in housing policy measures that could fill some of the problems identified. Examples of recommendations from some governmental and nongovernmental organizations are intended to illustrate some of the conditions under which change can pass.