Marina Horvat is currently attending the University of Law in Zagreb. It took years of persistence and determination from her settlement, Orehovica in Međimurje County, to get to where she is today. Marina’s story is one that is sadly all too familiar for many Roma. She attended segregated schooling from a young age, was ill prepared for elementary school and had to endure years of bullying and discrimination, despite, she stresses, her lighter skin color. Marina was determined in elementary school to get good grades. She also had a role model to look up to: Benjamin Ignac, an educated young Roma from the same settlement she grew up in. She followed Benjamin’s footsteps and successfully enrolled in secondary schooling. She recalls that in her gymnasium cohort, there were 28 Roma– only eight of them finished secondary education. Marina admits that for her the problems did not just come from non-Roma but often, she had difficulties with her Roma peers, as some didn’t acknowledge her shortcomings or relate to her because of her lighter skin. Marina mentions her family as the supportive unit that kept her going. Her father encouraged her to study, and always rewarded her good grades.
Today Marina is an active member of the Roma community in Zagreb and Međimurje County. She played a key role in organizing the first Roma youth congress with the young Roma from Zagreb and with the support of Roma MP and Roma alliance “Kali Sara”. She is an active member of Roma Youth Organization of Croatia.
REF has supported Marina primarily in her tertiary education, through mentoring and academic services. Marina advises others to, “follow your own dreams and make your own decisions regarding your life. You will not live from the society but from your work.” Marina constantly works on developing herself and would like to work helping Roma being supportive to other Roma by encouraging them to follow the path of education.
