Roma Rights Network Forum

George Ely is an American Rom, and his new film "Searching For The Fourth Nail" is out, and in it he explores the relationship between the American Roma and their brothers of different racial backgrounds.

As of yet we have not seen the film, but the concept behind it is to combat the steroetypes gadje have of the Roma, and one of the worst stereotypes that needs to be combatted is the one that all Roma are thieves.

And thats where Ely akes his faux pas in the presentation. The "Fouth Nail" legend has many forms, only one of which he presents. Basically it says a Jewish blacksmith was asked to make nails by a Roman Centurion, and in a dream God comes to him and tells him not to give the fourth nail.

In one version of the story he does not give the nail, and in a version of that version, the nail that was intended to pierce Christs heart that he kept caused Christ undue suffering and so the Roma (the descendants of the blacksmith) were cast Eden style to roa the earth till judgement day, as the sins of the father shall be visited on the sons. So far so good.

However, the version in the promotion of the movie is that for keeping the nail as commanded by God in the dream, Goid gave Roma the right to "roam the earth and steal from non Roma" - giving themselves the stereotype of being theives.

No doubt some criminal clans used this perversion of the legend to justify their actions in the eyes of their own people that gave their people a bad name among wider society.

I just hope Ely in the film itself explodes that particular myth.

The website for the film is: www.4thnail.com