(Bronislawa Wajs, 1908-1987) Papusza (doll) is a Romani poet from Poland and as Papusza one of the first women to publish her writing, she is considered the Mother of Romani poetry. She survived the Holocaust by hiding in the forest and much of her poetry reflects on that time, most famously, “Tears of Blood.” Literate gadjé neighbors taught her to read, and though her family and community severely disapproved, she persevered. Jerzy Ficowski discovered her in 1949 performing her songs with her husband, a violinist, and encouraged her to write them down. He translated and published her poetry in a magazine that supported the force settlement of Poland’s Roma, and her work became associated with the political movement to ghettoize the Roma. Because of this breach of trust, her community declared her marime and she was exiled. She spent great periods of her life in silence and died disgraced. However, her work lives on, and though only thirty-one of her poems have been recorded, she is one of the most important figures in Romani literature. http://www.vidaweb.org/twenty-gypsy-w...