Dr. David Scheffel
Dr. David Scheffel, a leading expert on the Roma peoples of Eastern Europe and an anthropologist at Thompson Rivers University (TRU), has been awarded a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Insight Grant of $86,700 to research Roma participation in local Slovak politics and examine the ways in which the arena of formal politics is being ‘domesticated’ to fit the needs of disenfranchised people.
The changing political conditions experienced by Slovak Roma mirror trends in other societies undergoing decolonization. Scheffel’s three-year project, titled “The underclass strikes back: Slovak Roma in municipal politics”, looks at the increasing participation and success of Roma in local politics in Slovakia, which has the highest number of Romani mayors and councillors in Europe.
It examines the consequences of participation in formal politics for local inter-ethnic relations, patterns of authority within Romani communities, and interaction with state agencies. This research should interest not only academics but also policy-makers, politicians, and the general public.
“This is wonderful news, and it’s very gratifying to see SSHRC recognize work that’s being done beyond the big research-intensive universities. The groundwork for this was laid during numerous visits to Romani communities in connection with a European field school run by TRU, and it shows how teaching and research can dovetail quite nicely,” said Scheffel, who has taken scores of university students to Slovakia and neighbouring countries.
Scheffel’s SSHRC Insight Grant will provide support for fieldwork in selected Slovak communities where Roma have become important players in municipal politics, and support international travel, attendance at workshops and conferences, and research assistants, including TRU students. It was one of twelve successful applications submitted by anthropologists and archaeologists from across Canada.
MORE INFORMATION
Dr. David Scheffel
Professor of Anthropology
Faculty of Arts
Thompson Rivers University
Tel: 250-828-5182
E-mail: dscheffel@tru.ca
