RoMagic: Proudly Queer. Unapologetically Roma, a photographic exhibition which has been on display in Brussels, Belgrade and Bucharest in recent months, shows the hidden lives and resilience of Europe’s Romani LGBTQ+ communities, long obscured due to both racism and homophobia.

Organised by the European Roma Rights Centre, ERRC, RoMagic includes intimate portraits and audio stories of queer Roma people from Hungary, Moldova, Romania or Serbia. Co-created by Romani activists and their allies, the exhibition combines documentary photography with personal testimonies, accessible via QR codes

“LGBTIQ+ Roma are so marginalised, so invisible, that the first step must simply be to affirm that we exist,” said Djordje Jovanovic, the ERRC’s president. “I hope this project gives our families words of courage and strengthens younger generations to choose life even when the struggle feels unbearable.”

The exhibition also sheds light on the broader struggles of Europe’s largest ethnic minority – still facing segregation, evictions, abuse by police and social exclusion, according to its members. For queer Roma, these injustices are compounded by rejection within their own communities and by society at large. “RoMagic is a call for solidarity, not competition in suffering,” Jovanovic added.

Antonella Lerca Duda. Photo: Vojin Ivkov/ERRC

Antonella Lerca Duda is a pioneering Romanian trans Roma woman, activist, and sex worker based in Bucharest. She has dedicated her life to advocating for the rights of marginalized communities, especially trans individuals and sex workers. Antonella is the founder of Sex Work Call, Romania’s first sex workers’ rights organization, and made history as the country’s first trans election candidate in 2020. She says she believes that what truly makes a human being is the ability to think.

“Many people act without reflection, like animals, driven only by instinct … When someone harms another, they stop being human, because humanity lies in thought, not just in the body,” she says.

Damir Komina. Photo: Vojin Ivkov/ERRC

Damir Komina is a Roma activist whose life story reflects the intersection of multiple identities and the challenges of belonging. Raised in Ohrid in North Macedonia, until the age of 15 Damir experienced a childhood free from division or inequality, where sharing and community were central. Moving to Serbia, however, he faced judgment and the need to hide his true self due to the country’s often patriarchal and intolerant attitudes. Openly LGBTQ+, Roma and Muslim, Damir embraces all parts of his identity, despite social disapproval. He says he finds strength in both his community and allies – and believes that “true humanity is shown through what we do, not just what we say”.

Elvira Drangoi. Photo: Vojin Ivkov/ERRC

Elvira Drangoi is a Roma lesbian activist born in southern Moldova. Growing up in a one-room house until aged 13 and facing bullying for her Roma identity, she struggled with self-acceptance. Raised in a Baptist family, Drangoi recalls fearing as a child that “Jesus might come one night, and since I’m not baptized, I’ll end up in hell”. She later recognised and embraced her sexual orientation and today works with queer and Roma rights organisations, highlighting the intersectional discrimination faced by Roma LGBTQ+ individuals in Moldova. For Drangoi, being human is all about emotions: love, dignity, and how we express what we feel. “My friends say I’m very emotionally driven, and I believe humanity lies in showing our feelings honestly and openly, in expressing who we truly are without fear or restraint,” she says.

David Bicskei. Photo: Vojin Ivkov/ERRC

David Bicskei is a 21-year-old Hungarian student training to become an English language and Hungarian literature teacher. Growing up in a predominantly Roma village near Siklos, he first encountered racial slurs at age six, an experience that awakened him to discrimination. “Many Roma face double discrimination, for being Roma and for their sexual orientation. Many queer Roma hide their identity, fearing extra prejudice. This ‘minority complex’ is deeply rooted,” said Bicskei. For him, “being human means living in the present, daring to think differently … and not fearing judgment for having your own voice.”

Photo: Vojin Ivkov/ERRC