What is Europeans vs. Romani People?

It is a Reddit meme format that points out a contrast between European criticism of American racism and widespread European hostility toward Romani (Roma, Gypsy) communities.

Where did Europeans vs. Romani People come from?

The topic grew out of Reddit discussions on r/worldnews in 2012 and r/AskReddit in 2013, with the first clear meme image posted to r/polandball on October 10th, 2014.

What does Europeans vs. Romani People mean?

The memes argue that many Europeans who denounce US racism openly express bias toward Romani people, a group whose ancestors migrated from the Indian subcontinent and whose common English name 'Gypsy' is used as a slur.

How do you use Europeans vs. Romani People?

Posters typically build a two-panel contrast, often in Polandball or political compass style, where a European character condemns American racism in one panel and insults Romani people in the next.

Is Europeans vs. Romani People still popular?

The format kept appearing through 2023, including a widely upvoted r/clevercomebacks screenshot in March of that year, though it stays tied to specific Reddit communities rather than wider platforms.

Europeans vs. Romani People

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Published October 22, 2026

Europeans vs. Romani People covers memes that point out a gap between how European internet users decry American racism while openly expressing hostility toward Romani communities. The contrast first surfaced in Reddit discussions around 2012 and 2013, then grew into a repeating joke format on r/PoliticalCompassMemes during the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests.

hypocrisy memes european memes stereotype memes two panel memes race and identity memes

Overview

Posts in this format typically set up a two-panel contrast: a European character condemning American racism in one frame, then insulting Romani (Roma, Gypsy) people in the next. The joke targets what posters see as hypocrisy, since Romani communities face widespread bias across the continent even as European commenters criticize racial issues in the United States2.

The Romani are a historically nomadic people whose ancestors migrated from the Indian subcontinent toward West Europe around the 14th century, and the English word "Gypsy" is now considered a slur that the first World Romani Congress voted to reject in 19711. Reddit threads about the group often collect anecdotes from Europeans describing conflicts with Romani neighbors, which the memes then flip back on the commenters themselves3. The format shows up in Polandball comics, political compass four-panel grids, and "clever comeback" screenshots on r/clevercomebacks6.

Gallery

Origin & Background

Platform

Reddit (r/polandball, r/PoliticalCompassMemes)

Date

2014

Early online discussion of European attitudes toward Romani people appeared on Reddit in late 2012, when /u/davidreiss666 shared a genetics study to r/worldnews that drew long comment threads about alleged Romani behavior2. A 2013 r/AskReddit post asking why Europeans "hate gypsies" collected similar replies and helped establish the topic as a recurring Reddit talking point3.

The earliest clear meme treatment arrived on October 10th, 2014, when a post titled "Gypsy Hunting" went up on r/polandball and framed European countries as unified in their dislike of Romani people4. Know Your Meme places this image within the format's documented origins5.

How It Spread

After the 2014 Polandball comic, the format picked up again on May 30th, 2019, when another r/polandball post titled "Enlightened Europeans" ran the same contrast and collected more than 3,600 upvotes over three years7. The joke moved into political compass territory during the summer of 2020, when the Black Lives Matter movement pushed many European commenters to condemn American racism in public, giving posters fresh material for the comparison5.

On March 8th, 2020, /u/hard_rain_falling posted a meme to r/PoliticalCompassMemes about European liberals criticizing US racism while holding anti-Romani views, which collected over 2,600 upvotes5. Two months later on May 8th, /u/known-look followed with a related entry on the same subreddit that gathered more than 2,000 upvotes6.

The format kept turning up on r/clevercomebacks as well. On March 4th, 2023, /u/Bilbo238 shared a screenshot in which a commenter listed reasons for disliking Romani people and received a reply asking which chapter of Mein Kampf the paragraph came from, a post that collected over 29,000 upvotes in a month according to Know Your Meme8.

Timeline

2012-12-03

/u/davidreiss666 shares a genetics study about Romani ancestry to r/worldnews, drawing comment threads about alleged Romani behavior.

2013

An r/AskReddit thread asks why Europeans dislike Romani people and collects anecdotes that help seed the topic online.

2014-10-10

The 'Gypsy Hunting' Polandball comic posts to r/polandball, giving the format its earliest clear meme treatment.

2019-05-30

'Enlightened Europeans' posts to r/polandball and collects over 3,600 upvotes contrasting European and American prejudice.

2020-03-08

/u/hard_rain_falling posts a Liberal Europeans meme to r/PoliticalCompassMemes during early BLM coverage.

2020-05-08

/u/known-look follows with a related Europe-vs-America meme on r/PoliticalCompassMemes.

2023-03-04

/u/Bilbo238 shares a Mein Kampf comeback screenshot to r/clevercomebacks that collects over 29,000 upvotes.

How to Use This Meme

Creators typically build the joke around a two-part contrast. One side shows a European reacting with outrage at American racism, Confederate flags, or police shootings, and the other side shows the same character using slurs against or demanding the removal of Romani people. Common conventions include the Polandball art style for country-vs-country jokes, the four-quadrant political compass layout for ideological digs, and screenshot comebacks that pair a hostile comment with a reply calling out the hypocrisy.