In 1952, the government of the Polish People’s Republic launched “Action C,” aimed at transforming the nomadic Roma community into a settled one through registration, documentation, and issuing identity papers.
Assimilation under the guise of assistance
Action C extended across the entire territory of Poland as a state-led campaign to “productivize” the Roma and reshape their way of life from nomadic to sedentary. The government conducted detailed population counts, collected personal data, and replaced identity cards with registration certificates tied to fixed places of residence. Local authorities and the militia implemented educational and supervisory measures, often framed as “social aid,” to pressure Roma families into compliance. Although officials presented the policy as integration, its methods reflected coercion rather than support. Many Roma resisted, maintaining mobility and cultural continuity despite surveillance and administrative control. The campaign’s legacy was enduring: it formalised state monitoring of Roma communities, restricted movement, and imposed structural dependency on welfare systems—marking the beginning of systematic attempts to erase Roma autonomy in postwar Poland.
