Romanistan
The authors of Secrets of Romani Fortune Telling present: Romanistan! Do you love rebels? Do you want to live in a place where outcasts shine their brightest? Welcome to Romanistan! We're your friendly neighborhood Gypsies, celebrating Romani identity and outcast culture, and practicing good diplomatic relations with other marginalized communities.
We love the rebels who are living their truth, even if it clashes with tradition. We also love tradition and honoring our roots. This podcast is for everyone who loves and supports Roma & related groups, and anyone who feels like a misfit and wants to uplift others to create a beautiful community.
We feature pioneers in culture, fashion, art, literature, music, activism, cuisine, and everything good. We adore the intersections of gender, sexuality, spirituality, ability, and identity. We cover all topics, from the difficult to the glorious. Let's sit crooked and talk straight.
Hosted by Paulina Stevens and Jezmina Von Thiele. We reclaim the slur Gypsy, but if you aren’t Romani, we prefer you don't use it. xoxo.
P.S. The Romani people are a diasporic ethnic group originally from northwest India, circa the 10th century. Now, Roma live all over the globe, and due to centuries of oppression, slavery, genocide, and other atrocities, Roma are still fighting for basic human rights. We seek to raise awareness of who Roma are, and highlight Romani resilience, creativity, & culture.
Romanistan
Interview with Earl Small, celebrated Romani MMA fighter
In this episode, Paulina and Jess interview the celebrated Romani MMA fighter, Earl Small. We discuss his career, the history of professional fighting in the Romani community, & Small’s hopes for Roma. You can find Earl Small on Instagram at @trouble_302bjj, and check out his matches if you're in the tri-state area.
You can find Romanistan Podcast on Instagram @romanistanpodcast, and on Facebook under the same name, and on Twitter @romanistanpod.
We started a Ko-fi fundraiser to help us expand. Our goal is to release 2 episodes a month, create video content, like an advice column and other treats, and we would also like to register as a nonprofit so we can produce content by other Romani & Sinti creators. We are hoping to cover production costs, like paying for our hosting site, website, editing and producing, and all the rest. We would love it if you could contribute and spread the word. Here’s the link: Ko-fi.com/romanistan
Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much.
If you would like to advertise with us, email us at romanistanpodcast@gmail.com. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti, & related businesses, so reach out!
You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find my vintage and curiosities shop, Evil Eye Edit @evileyeedit on Instagram & Etsy.
You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and check out her store at www.romaniholistic.com
Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski
Conceived of by Paulina Verminski
Edited and Produced by Cherub. Find her on Instagram @Cherhhhbim
with Music by Viktor Pachas. Find him on Bandcamp at https://victorpachas.bandcamp.com/
and Artwork by Elijah Vardo. Find him on Instagram @elijahvardo