socialist system were significant in improving the lifestyle of this minority. The collapse of Communism in 1989 has had significant impacts on the Gypsy populations all over Eastern Europe. The transition from socialism was expected to be a positive step in the treatment of the Gypsies. They could now voice their political opinions and become politically active if they so chose. The Gypsies would hopefully no longer be marginalized by the government and people of Czechoslovakia. Unfortunately, the transition to a democratic form of government has produced significant problems for the Gypsies that were not even felt under communism. Today, the Gypsies face widespread economic problems, and their ethnic marginilization continues. The transition from a communist system of government to a democratic one, and the evolution from a centrally planned economy to a free market and performance oriented one has brought about severe poverty for the Gypsies. The emergence of a free market economy has created labor competition in every sector of the economy. Under the new system labor is expendable and those with no skills or weak employment records are simply not hired for jobs. The Gypsies have been especially hard hit by this transition because the large majority of their population are unskilled and untrained. "In the postcommunist period, the Roma(Gypsies) tend to be fired first and hired last, both because of these objective circumstances and because of remaining prejudice against them (Barany 145)." Unemployment levels among the Gypsy population are around 70 - 80 percent of the population. Another problem with the collapse of the socialist system is that social programs are no longer guaranteed, which creates a huge problem for the Gypsies. Because of the scarcity of these social programs, the Gypsies have turned to crime, prostitution, and begging. The Gypsies economic situation is only expected to get worse in the future. The number of ...
