Abstract
This paper investigates the susceptibility of the Romani minority in the Balkans to radicalization, focusing on members of the Salafi community living in the suburbs of a large Serbian city. Our study provides insights into the experiences and perspectives of a marginalized community that is often overlooked in research on radicalization. Despite the Romani community's historical commitment to nonviolence, ongoing stigmatization and exclusion incentivize individuals to seek alternative forms of belonging. However, adopting Salafism's universalist principles at the cost of abandoning their distinct culture can make them susceptible to radicalization, thereby increasing the risk of engaging in violent extremism. Illustrating the Romani's shift in belonging, we present a preliminary five-stage model of marginalized identity transformation. The research findings reveal that, while the Romani community is generally resilient against radicalization, their vulnerability to extremist recruitment is heightened by ongoing stigmatization, exclusion, and trauma. This paper utilizes qualitative methods to investigate the factors driving
Romani individuals towards the Salafism ideology, which offers an inclusive sense of belonging and recognition. Ethnographic techniques such as in-depth qualitative interviewing and observation are used for data collection, while narrative analysis of interview transcripts is conducted for data analysis.