Sinti Community of Trieste. A multi-sited ethnographic research

Abstract

This paper arises from more than twelve years of field research within the Sinti community of Trieste. Through conversations, participant observations, and shared daily life experiences, it was possible to understand how Sinti children and youths experience school and education. The 42 interviews collected reveal stories of exclusion but also of resilience. The weight of history – from past persecutions to present discrimination – continues to shape their educational paths. Nevertheless, Sinti families display rich and often invisible educational practices, alternative ways of transmitting knowledge and cultural resistance. This research aims to give voice to those rarely heard and to suggest how school may become a real space of inclusion for all (Marcus, 1995; Vitale & Caruso, 2009).