la fragua / the team
iñaki vázquez arencón

short biography of iñaki
iñaki vázquez arencón (reus, catalonia, 1967). graduate in social intervention with rroma community (universidad pública de navarra). studying for a degree in social education (universitat oberta de catalunya) and has worked in graphic arts, with more than 25 years of professional experience in this sector.
he has actively participated in various socio-political movements from a very early age. an expert in social participation and democratic radicalism, he was an advisor for special programmes, with specific coordination functions, in civic centres network and citizen participation area of reus city council (2007-2010). he was a member of the social project conversa, laboratorio de pedagogías críticas.
sexual and gender dissidence activist, he was spokesperson for the lgtbiq association h2o (2002-2006). he co-organised the first rroma-lgtbiq seminar in spain, held in madrid on world pride madrid 2017.
he has published several articles on rroma dissident sexualities and on antigypsyism in various media. member of the editorial board of the magazine colors, in which he has written, among others, articles about lgtbiq migrants in catalonia. he has participated in the books: el libro del buen amor and antigitanismo, 13 miradas, as co-author.
rroma activist. he has collaborated with various rroma organisations. he was a member of kale amenge and ververipen, rroms por la diversidad. he was the director of the national-wide rroma organisation plataforma khetane (2016-2021). he coordinated roma civil monitor project in spain (2017-2020), promoted by the european commission in agreement with central european university, which produced independent reports on national strategy for rroma inclusion; he subsequently returned to coordinate this project from 2021 to 2022. he also coordinated rromani pativ project, which addresses and responds to antigypsyism on internet and in media (2017-2019). he has been a consultant to osce-odihr since 2019 on Roma portrayal in the media. in 2021 he was chosen to represent spanish rroma civil society in the european platform for rroma inclusion, a body sponsored by the european commission.
he is currently promoting the social and solidarity economy project la fragua projects.