In this episode, we end the tattoo series... for now! Paulina and Jess interview Meesha Ratzlaff, a multidisciplinary Romani tattoo artist based out of Vancouver, BC., Canada. Meesha’s personal works are largely based and reminiscent of renaissance imagery and architecture, paying homage to her motherland and heritage of the Czech Republic. As a tattooer, she is exploring ways to connect themes of nostalgia, Gypsy pride, recognition as well as negligence in tattoo design and flash pieces.

You can follow Meesha at @gypsy.tattoo on Instagram and book with her here or through the link in her bio. She gives a shout out to her former tattoo parlor, Sleight of Hand @soh_vancouver, and is, at the time of recording, about to open her own shop, Svatura! Follow her on social media to stay tuned.

Romani crushes this episode include L.L. Junior @l.l.junior, and Meesha thinks Eugene Hütz of Gogol Bordello counts as well! Jez added Romaní @r.o.m.a.n.i too.

Get 15% off Rowena Marin's memoir Who Am I in This World? with code WHOAMI15 at checkout until the presale ends on August 31st. Every sale makes it possible for this book to be published! Buy the book here.  Follow her on Instagram at @rowenam.author.

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

In this episode, Paulina and Jess talk with Priya Kaur Handa, our international relations (gadje/non-Romani) guest about the traditional roots of tattooing as a sacred or healing practice, and her work as an intuitive tattoo artist.

Priya is a tattoo artist based out of Brooklyn, New York. Born and raised in the Bay Area, California, Priya grew up with the influences of the Bay Area art scene along with doing work on community murals and painting for different social justice causes. When she started tattooing she wanted to find a way to bring the same intentions for healing and community into her tattoo work. From there and simultaneously being on her own healing journey she started doing Intuitive Tattoos at MINKA Brooklyn. Currently, she works as a painter, muralist, and tattoo artist. Follow Priya at @priya.k.handa.

Some inclusive tattoo studios that Priya loves in Oakland, CA are Amore Eterno Arte, Tres Leches, and Julay at Sacred Spirit Ink.  Priya also is inspired by artists Tamara Santibañez and their book Could This Be Magic?, muralist Brett Cook,  muralist Juana Alicia, and the artist collective Trust Your Struggle. 

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

Wes is a tattoo artist living in New Orleans, Louisiana, working at Hell or High Water Tattoo. Growing up in Kansas he relied heavily on the library and a mentor to learn about painting, often bringing home stacks of books he’d study instead of his schoolwork. He decided to devote his life to “low-brow” art after realizing how accessible, practical and human it felt. Once getting written up for drawing on schoolmates in sharpie, he now gets to meet people from all over the world and help them tell their stories. Like many American Roma he learned about his heritage in parcels of tales passed down from family members, grasping at what shreds of culture were left after a couple generations of assimilation. Tattooing can be a method of memory storage and often be a gender or body-affirming practice. As a trans man he feels privileged to provide this service to people around him.

You can follow him on Instagram at @wesdoestattoos

Our Romani crush this week is Gonzo Phoenix! You can follow them at @gonzo_phoenix.makeup and @shuvanicandleco. 

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

In this episode, Paulina and Jess chat with tattoo artist Amelia Hearts as part of our tattoo artist series.

Amelia Hearts currently lives in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and specializes in multiple tattoo styles from realism to neotraditional, watercolor, and illustrative. She has been tattooing for 13 years, and absolutely loves it. She’s currently tattooing at Sacred Soul Collective. You can book with her here: https://linktr.ee/AmeliaHearts, and follow her on Instagram at @ameliaheartstattoo. 

We also want to acknowledge the overturn of Roe V. Wade, and encourage our listeners to take action in the fight for abortion rights for all. 

• abortion.cafe - collection of abortion resources
• shoutyourabortion.com - campaign to normalize abortion
• donations4abortion.com - donate to support abortion funds by state
• secure.actblue.com/donate/supportabortionfunds - donate to the national network of abortion funds (donations split between 80+ abortion funds)
• usow.org/repro/volunteer - list of abortion clinics across the country that need volunteers
• dontbanequality.com - language for companies to use to stand against the ruling
• plancpills.org/ambassadors - early abortion access pills you can store in your cabinet
• prochoice.org - abortion access hotline
• natalist.com/products/early-pregnancy-test-strips - buy early pregnancy test strips
• plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control - get info on types of birth control
• choice.crd.co - collection of these above links and more, managed by @starplanes (DM them on twitter to add more)
• guttmacher.org/state-policy/explore/abortion-policy-absence-roe - abortion policy by state as of June 1, 2022

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

In this bonus episode we ask, is America really number 1? Find out what we mean.

CW: Gun violence

Take a look at https://linkin.bio/everytown to get involved. 

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

Happy Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller Pride Month, and Happy LGBTQ+ Pride Month! We're celebrating with mini interviews with LGBTQ+ Roma exclusively on Instagram Live, so follow us there for the celebration.

This interview doesn't really have anything to do with pride month specifically, but we have a delicious discussion with Mark Adams, co-owner of the popular California Bay area, Romani-American food truck, Holy Chile Mole, which he runs with his wife. We talk about food fusion, comfort food, the ins and outs of running a food truck, and the benefits of working family trades and also doing your own thing instead.

Find Holy Chile Mole's schedule and menu here https://holychilemole.com/ and follow them on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @holychilemole.

Romani crush for this episode is @AnyaTheodora1

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

Aurora Luna is a full-time multimedia artist, musician, writer, and tarot reader/astrologer (Western & Jyotish) whose work is heavily informed and influenced by myth, magic, and mystery. Paulina and Jess have a fascinating conversation with Aurora about their artistic work, their spirituality, and the creative process. Follow their work on TikTok and Instagram @baby_recklesss, join their Patreon, and check out more of their offerings here https://beacons.ai/baby_recklesss.

Aurora Luna's Romani crushes for this episode are Sveta who runs the educational Instagram account @romnija, and Pilar Almeida, founder and CEO of Kamav Kosmetics @kamavkosmetics. 

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

We have the pleasure of interviewing Jud Nirenberg, author of Johann Trollmann and Romani Resistance to the Nazis, which we read from for our Romani Resistance Day episode in season 1. In this episode, we hear about Jud’s work, the importance of Romani Resistance Day, and the story of Sinto fighter Johann Trollmann.

Jud Nirenberg is a Romani American writer who has authored, co-authored and edited several books on Romani issues. He won the 2017 Baxt Award, given by the Romani Media Initiative.  

Jud lived for many years in Europe, working in the Romani civil rights movement. Starting out at a Romani political party in Prague, he would later direct the largest program funding and training Roma activists in Europe at George Soros' Open Society Foundations. He went on to hold a variety of leadership positions in Roma organizations before serving as CEO and, later, consultant to the largest federation of Roma community organizations, the ERTF (European Roma and Traveller Forum), which survives on a much-reduced scale. 

Jud has lectured on Roma issues at the State Department's Foreign Service Institute and as a guest speaker at schools including Harvard, Tufts, NYU, Purdue and more.

Today he serves as vice-president of board of the National Roma Centre in North. Macedonia and is a consultant to immigration attorneys and Roma asylum-seekers in refugee law cases.

This episode's Romani crush is activist Orhan Tahir.

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

We are delighted to interview Raine Geoghegan. Raine is of mixed heritage, English-Romany, Welsh and Irish. She is a Poet, Prose Writer, Playwright, Voice Over Artist and Performance Coach. Nominated twice for the Pushcart Prize; Forward Prize and Best of the Net, her work has been published internationally both in print and online as well as being widely anthologized, including in Wagtail: The Roma Women’s Poetry Anthology. She is the Romani Script Consultant for the musical ‘For Tonight’. Her first full collection, The Talking Stick, will be published soon with Salmon Poetry Press.

You can find her work by going to https://www.rainegeoghegan.co.uk/ or following her at @RaineGeoghegan5 on Twitter and @rainegeoghegan on Instagram.

Romani crushes for this episode include Dr. Émilie Herbert-Pontonnier, creator of Romani Herstory @romani.herstory, Mike Doherty @mike.doherty.5268 and Lisa Smith @lisa_mezzy of Traveller's Times, Lucy Hetherington and Suzanna King of Friends Families, and Travellers, and Isaac Blake @isaacblake1979 of Romani Arts. 

Thank you for listening to Romanistan podcast.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo

We're sharing an interview we did many months back at the Roma People’s Project of Columbia University’s month-long conference with Rowena Marin, Romani entrepreneur & author. Please keep an eye out for Rowena’s memoir, which will be published next year, called Who am I in the world? And check out her Instagram page @rowenam.author.

The Roma Peoples Project at Columbia University is an initiative that creates and spotlights academic material and events about the Roma peoples, aiming to examine, curate and produce scholarship by and about the Roma. RPP aims to bring Roma studies to the forefront of academia and global narratives, creating spaces for Roma people to connect and share their stories. They do this through articles in mainstream media and academic literature, public events and campaigns to raise public awareness of the situation of Roma people worldwide. Their flagship annual event is their educational festival, which is what the following interview is from, and they also host programs throughout the year. If you can contribute to their work, please do, or share. https://www.givenow.columbia.edu/?_sa=24469&_sd=384#/giveonline

CW: Without going into detail, in the course of the interview, we refer to child abuse, childhood sexual abuse, incest, and domestic violence. Take care of yourself if you’re listening and if it brings something up for you, maybe reach out to your support system.

You can find us 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. The link, Ko-fi.com/romanistan, is in our bio on Instagram, and will be in the show notes

Please rate, review, and subscribe. It helps us so much. 

If you would like to advertise with us, email us at [email protected]. We offer sliding-scale for Romani, Sinti & related businesses, so reach out!

You can find Jess on Instagram @jezmina.vonthiele, and you can find Jess’ vintage and curiosities shop Evil Eye Edit on Instagram @evileyeedit & Etsy.

You can find Paulina Verminski on Instagram @_paulina_v_ and at https://romaniholistic.com/. Follow Paulina’s store, Romani Holistic, in Corona Del Mar, CA, on Instagram @romaniholistic 

Romanistan is hosted by Jessica Reidy and Paulina Verminski

Conceived of by Paulina Verminski

Edited by Cherub

With Music by Viktor Pachas

And Artwork by Elijah Vardo