I had a fascinating opportunity to observe an extended family of gypsies recently. It was outside the Vatican. Three of us had gotten a sandwich and were eating it in a grassed traffic circle near a family of these folks. It was really interesting. The younger women repaired the musical instruments (with tape) while the men took a nap. The smaller children were obviously happy and well-cared for. One little girl needed to go to the bathroom and was in transition to being potty-trained. Her need became a family event that everyone seemed interested in. It wasn't hard to see how these children grow up into lives of crime. They are an integral part of their extended families and cared for there. Yet they remain aloof from the rest of society who shun them because they don't want to loose their wallets...
"The Roma people originally lived in north west India, and migrated to Persia from 224 to 642 CE. They lived under Arab rule in the Middle East from 642 to 900 CE, and eventually arrived in Constantinople. 17 Some authorities believe that there may have been additional migrations at a later date. By the 14th and 15th centuries, they had drifted into western Europe. Some emigrated from Europe to the US and Canada in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Following World War II, and lately the fall of Communism in Eastern Europe, there has been an additional westward migration. "