Chapter 2 Context, program, data and field work
2.2 Research context
The Spanish Roma or gitanos1 constitute the largest most excluded and disad- vantaged ethnic minority in Spain (Laparra et al., 2007b). It is estimated that there are between 570,000 and 1,100,000gitanosliving in Spain (Laparra et al., 2007a), and around 10% of them are residents in the Region of Madrid2.
Data on basic socio-economic indicators for the Spanish Roma can only be in- ferred approximately based on different studies with varying degrees of quality3. The
1Anthropologists distinguish different Spanish Roma groups residing in Spain, and the literature dis-
cusses and argues different possible classifications and terminologies –see San Rom´an (1997). I control for these distinctions in my analysis, but have chosen to use the termgitanosand Spanish Roma indis- tinctly for all the Roma born in Spain that are Spanish nationals and/or are not recent immigrants, which is the way they are addressed as as a group. I exclude from my work all the Roma that have recently arrived from other European countries (such as Romania), which are different from the Spanish Roma and are not the objective of our study.
2Comunidad Aut´onoma de Madrid.
Table 2.1: Comparison of socio-economic indicators for the Spanish Roma
Population living in Spain Indicators Total Roma Immigrants
Education
Percentage illiterate 2.2 8.7 −
Poverty indicators
Percentage below 60% of the poverty rate median in Spain 16.9 77.1 29.6 Percentage below 30% of the poverty rate median in Spain 3.4 37.5 4.3
Labour
Percentage of workforce working as employees 83.6 37.6 −
Family size
Number of children per family 0.8 2.7 −
Notes:The statistics shown in the table are the best available approximation to the current situation of thegitanos(MHSPE, 2012). However, it must be noted that they have been obtained from different studies and do not correspond to the same or equivalent samples, and differ both in time range (between 2007 and 2011) and location of the sample (differ- ent cities). These studies also vary in their methods for data collection and analysis (details on the studies, data sources, sample and methodology, are provided in MHSPE (2012)).
motive for this lack of data are the strict regulations in the Spanish data protection laws regarding the collection of ethnic data. Still, compiling the numbers provided by differ- ent studies we can obtain a fairly reasonable picture of the situation of thegitanos, as shown in Table 2.1.
According to a survey conducted in 20074, 77.1% of the Roma in Spain are be- low 60% of the relative poverty rate median in Spain (in contrast with 16.9% of the total population and 29.6% of immigrants) and 37.5% of the gitanos are below 30% of the relative poverty median (only 3.4% of the total Spanish population and 4.3% of non-nationals are below the 30%). The Roma marry younger and have larger fami- lies. The latest estimates produced indicate that on average one third of thegitanosare younger than 15 years old and Roma families have 2.7 children on average (the average Spanish family has 0.8 children)5. In terms of literacy rates, 8.7% of the Spanish Roma are illiterate, in contrast with 2.2% of the total Spanish population. The Roma work mainly in the informal economy, and thus estimates on unemployment rates are not reli- able. A better approximation of the differences between Spanish Roma and non-Roma
4Survey Foessa 2007, see Laparra et al. (2007a) 5Estimates calculated from data collected in 2007.
workers comes from estimates of the percentage of the Spanish workforce working as employees: 83.6% of the total Spanish workforce and 37.6% of the total Spanish Roma workforce. All these statistics are summarized in Table 2.1. It is important to note that they are not comparable: They come from different studies, with different methodolo- gies for data collection and analysis. Also, the data presented in each statistic has been collected at different points in time (between 2007 and 2011) and from different popula- tions (different representative cities). Still, the studies were designed with the objective of collecting basic information on the total Spanish Roma population in Spain, and they are the best approximation available to the current situation of the gitanos (MHSPE, 2012).
Data for the Roma in Madrid and, more specifically, for the Roma living in settlements, is even scarcer (mostly collected for the purpose of creating censuses). IRIS collects some basic data when they start to work in a slum. In Table 2.2, we show statistics on illiteracy rates and declared monthly income that have been collected by IRIS staff in the slums. It is important to note that this data comes from different slums, depending on the year for which it is recorded, and that it includes all people living in the slum that provided IRIS with this information.The population for each year is not comparable. The majority of these people are Spanish Roma, but in the later years (2010 and 2011) there is an increasing percentage of people from other ethnicities or origin (especially immigrants). For example, one of the slums included in the data shown (corresponding to the years 2010 and 2011), Ventorro, has a population composition that is different from that of the other slums and has better educated individuals6. Also
the slum of Santa Catalina was considerably richer on average than the rest, which does not translate in the collected data onMonthly income declared but is probably driving part of the differences in the illiteracy rate for 2010 too.
The data shown in Table 2.2 suggests that illiteracy rates for the Roma slum- dwellers have decreased considerably. This trend is also observed in the Roma popula- tion in general (see MHSPE (2012)), so despite the limited reliability of the indicators presented in Table 2.2 (for the reasons stated above) we can presume that the trend in illiteracy rates is downwards also for the ever diminishing numbers ofgitanosliving in slums.
6The families living in this slum have not been rehoused by IRIS yet, and are therefore not included
Table 2.2: Evolution of literacy and poverty in the slums
Slums data from IRIS records (individuals ages 17 and above) 2003 2006 2008 2010 2011
Illiteracy rate
Illiterate 0.62 0.30 0.22 0.15 0.17
Monthly income declared
Below 601e 0.66 0.68 0.75 0.61 0.61 Below 1081e 0.94 0.96 0.95 0.89 0.90
Item response (0.34) (0.54) (0.72) (0.46) (0.38) Notes:Entries in the table correspond to the means of the relevant vari- ables and were calculated adding up the average values for the slums for which data was collected on the particular year; in 2003, informa- tion was collected for the slums: El Cristo, Pitis, Huertos, San Ferm´ın, Santa Catalina, Trigales, Barranquillas, and Salobral; in 2006, data was gathered from: Santa Catalina, Trigales, Barranquillas, Salobral, and Ventorro; in 2008, from Santa Catalina and Ventorro; in 2010 and 2011, from Santa Catalina, Ventorro, Gallinero, Antonio Cabez´on, Manuel Villarta, Bajo Gran V´ıa, Las Castellanas, and San Nicasio. The variable
Illiterateuses the sample of individuals age 17 and above.Monthly in- come declaredrefers to total family income and the item response rates are provided in parenthesis in the last row of the table.
In Table 2.2 we also show data for reported income. We can conclude from the data that they declare a below the minimum income salary. Although the figure is not reliable (the families reported this information to IRIS with no proof and they also have an incentive to report low incomes), it is credible and reinforces the outcomes presented in Table 2.1 for the total Spanish Roma population.
Our study focuses on the Roma that are participating in IRIS housing program, which correspond to 12-18% of the total number of Spanish Roma living in Madrid, according to IRIS estimates (IRIS, 2010). All these families come from settlements and can be fairly considered representative of the Roma in Madrid, bar the exceptional better off (which are generally low low-middle class at most) because the majority of people living in settlements in Spain used to be gitanos and a large number of them lived in settlements (as we will argue in detail in section 2.3). This trend has only changed recently, when mostgitanosare living in flats (the majority in public housing). At present date, very fewgitanosstill live in slums in Madrid and there is only one large settlement in the Region, Ca˜nada Real7, and the largest population currently living in
this settlement are immigrants.