Song of the Resistance of Raymond Gureme

Song by Henriette Gurême, Performed by Aline Miklos

The song was written in the first camp where Raymond Gureme was. It was written by his sisters when Raymond Gureme escaped for the first time. They sang the song in the morning when the guards called the prisoners and when they called Raymond Gureme.

Lyrics

Ce qu’aucun homme n’a pus faire,
What no man could ever do

Un gamin de 15 ans l’a montré
A 15 years old kid was able to

Que ce n’est pas une affaire
It was no small business

de se sauver tout en étant enchaîné
To escape while in chains

C’était pour une bagatelle
They locked him away

Qu’ils l’avaient mus au cagibi
For a petty mistake

Mais sa colère en était telle
But his anger was such

Que le soir il est parti
That the same night he was away.

Parti de Lina-Monthléry
No longer at the camp

Les gendarmes se mirent à ses trousses
The soldiers went in search of him

Mais ils n‘ont pas pu l’attraper
But returned empty – handed.

Ils sont revenus tous bredouillés
They came back confused

Le chef avait l’air d’une andouille
The chief seemed foolish

Et si Dieu le veut bien
And if God wills it

C’est pas aujourd’hui ni demain
We won’t see our brother again

Que nous reverrons notre frangin
Either today or tomorrow.

Youth Tribute to Raymond Gureme

Dikh He Na Bister pays tribute to our friend and hero Raymond Gurême, who died in May 2020. He would be celebrating bis 95th birthday in a few days on 11th August. Raymond was born into a Manouche family of actors and acrobats in France. In Nazi-occupied Europe, his family had been imprisoned in camps, like so many other Romani people under fascism. As a teenager, he would break into these camps to feed and care for his loved ones, before boldly escaping again! His sister Henriette wrote a song about his courage.

Raymond was a warm mischievous soul, at the center of the Dikh He Na Bister youth remembrance meetings. He has become the leading voice and figure of the Romani Resistance movement for dignity, solidarity, human rights and against any form of racism. He invested his last years to encourage young people to continue his fight and to live in freedom and with joy.
This is a collection of memories of our times together! Let us pay tribute to Raymond. Let us preserve and take responsibility for his legacy. Let us stand up and raise your voice: Resist!

Song by Henriette Gurême
Performed by Aline Miklos
Piano by Matthew Winkworth
Film edited by Delfin Łakatosz

www.2august.eu
Dikh He Na Bister 2020