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Poetry of colors A Romany teenager records her dreams By Arie Farnam Staff Writer Her silk scarf perfectly matched the plush pink decor. She radiated beauty worthy of a magazine cover -- her skin golden brown, her eyes large and dark. Of the more than 60 boisterous children and teenagers that U.S. Ambassador John Shattuck invited to his residence on Dec. 1, Anezka Slepcikova alone looked as if she belonged in the elegant surroundings. However, Anezka wasn't being celebrated for her beauty, but for her creativity: She won one of 25 awards in the third annual Romano Suno (Romany Dream) competition for children's poetry. The public service organization New School organizes the contest, and also sends Romany (Gypsy) assistant teachers into schools as part of a new program with the Education Ministry. "This competition is going to save the Romany language," 15-year-old Anezka told reporters, flashing a poster-child smile. Whatever the competition's judges may think, according to the Education Ministry Anezka is not among the cream of Czech youth. She came to Prague for the awards ceremony from the rural north Bohemian town of Jablonne v Podjestedi, where she lives in a home for abandoned children and attends a special school for the mentally disabled. Through the cracks The children's home lies at the end of a dirt track that winds through a birch grove outside of town. Here, Anezka shares a small room with three other girls. The wall above her bed is plastered with album covers of the Spice Girls and Lunetic, as well as photos of her friends and the one brother she still has contact with. "I don't have much information about where I lived when I was little. I know that before I came here, I was in a home for preschool children in Louny," she says. Anezka doesn't remember her parents. Her records show that her father died, and her mother gave Anezka and her eight siblings up to various homes around the Czech Republic. "My mother didn't want us. I don't want to know her, either. Why should I think of her as my mother, if she doesn't want me?" she says matter-of-factly. She's not alone. Czech children's homes house a disproportionate number of Romany children, and the government estimates that 75 percent of Romany children attend remedial schools. Before she entered first grade, Anezka took a "psychological test," which is administered to children who are recommended for remedial school placement by a teacher or pedagogue. According to the test results, her vocabulary and intelligence were insufficient for mainstream elementary school, and she was sent to the special school in Jablonne. Anezka was taught to speak Czech and quickly forgot the Romany language, which was discouraged in school and at the children's home for many years. "I grew up among Czechs. When I was little, I didn't know I was Romany. I knew only that I was dark. I dreamed of being a blonde, with light skin and blue eyes," she says. Then Jana Pravdova, an elementary schoolteacher with 40 years of experience, took over Anezka's class three years ago. She encountered eight children, six of whom were Romany, and refused to believe the official diagnosis that they were mentally deficient. "These are smart kids," she says, beaming over her charges. "Sometimes I use books from the [mainstream] elementary school, and the children like that. They know it's something extra. They want to go to elementary school and learn, but at this age it's too late. They're 15 years old, and they can't go back to elementary school." Pravdova soon recognized Anezka's abilities and arranged for her to take another test. This time the results showed that she should be in a challenging academic program. "I wish I could study at secondary school," Anezka says. "I really like to learn. Academic subjects are my biggest interest right now." Pravdova says that currently children from special schools are not allowed to study at academic secondary schools (gymnazium), although new legislation is emerging to create an opportunity for children like Anezka to get elementary school certificates through independent study. "Even if that happens, it will be terribly difficult for them," Pravdova says. "They'll have a lot of catching up to do, but I believe that Anezka is capable of that." Words to remember The classroom is decorated with bright paper cut-outs of snowmen. Gingerbread baked by the children cools on the window sill, and glittering paper stars hang from the ceiling. Pravdova writes three Romany words from a dictionary on the blackboard each morning. "These children are Romany, and they should know their mother tongue. They need to know their roots and be able to express them," Pravdova says. Despite Pravdova's efforts to provide a supportive atmosphere for Romany children, Anezka still dreamed of being blond. "She was always saying, 'I wish I had golden hair. Why am I so black?' " Pravdova says. "One night I was lying awake thinking, and it came to me. I realized that she should write about her wish to be a blonde. All I suggested was that she write about that desire, and in the end she turned it into something positive for herself." The poem that emerged, "Ruzove Zrcadlo" (Rose-colored Mirror), does deal with her desire to be blonde, but talks about it as something of the past. She gives the credit to her teacher, "who taught me not to undervalue myself and to be proud." Anezka wrote her poem in Czech. When she decided to submit it to the competition, she had to translate it word by word with a dictionary into Romany -- the only language eligible. The New School decided that next year a new category will open for children of Romany descent who have to translate their work into Romany from another language. This will allow Romany children in boarding schools and orphanages to compete on even ground. "On the bus back from Prague, we were already planning what we're going to write next year," Anezka says. "I'm not exactly sure yet what I'll write, but I'll definitely write in again." She says she still has doubts about the way she looks and about her Romany background. "I know that some Romanies live on welfare and don't know how to behave, but this is also because they are not given opportunities for education. They can't get jobs because the whites see only their skin color," she says. The awards ceremony, with speeches, music and dancing under glittering chandeliers, left the children dazzled. "It was very fun and motivating," Anezka says. "I may become a seamstress or a cook, but if by some miracle I'm able to continue my studies, I'd like to do some kind of social work in the courts. I want to fight for human rights, to fight for the Romany."
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