  I spent the weekend with a friend of mine, who is Greek. I mentioned to her mother about my internship. "Romania? That's where the gypsies come from! You shouldn't be going over there! There are gypsies! " You should have seen the look of horror on her face when I told her that one of my organisation's projects was to integrate the Roma (gypsies) into Romanian culture. "The gypsies will steal the teeth out of your head! " "The IIT is working to counteract this negative impression of the Roma.
" "Roma? " "Yeah...that's what they want to be called. Like 'Inuit' instead of 'Eskimos'. " "You watch out for those...those...gypsies. They'll steal the teeth from your head! " "I think that's a slight exageration. This is like a vicious circle. You see the same thing with the First Nations here. " "I was almost lured into a gypsy camp when I was younger...good thing I was rescued before it was too late. I would never have been found again. You better listen to me: watch out! You should never trust a gypsy. " "Roma. " Old stereotypes die hard, I guess. 
