Gypsies and ltinerance: Realities and Hospitality Forms

Abstract

In Portugal, as in most European countries, the lack of up-to-date data on the Roma population with a high level of territorial breakdown has made it difficult to define public, local or national policies. A recently completed study has identified the size of the gypsy community in much of the continental territory; the places of stay of the itinerant Gypsies and reasons for the alteration of the fixing spaces; the "formalized" reactions of the local population to the presence of Roma; and the existence of specific places to accommodate itinerant populations. These results are presented in this article to ultimately reflect on the potential of the reception areas as an innovative response to the problem of housing for disadvantaged populations or as a right of itinerants.