Europe is home to 10-12 million Ronma - a group people often called "gypsies." Many Roma are poor. In some places, they also face discrimination. Now some Roma teenagers are using hip-hop to teach tolerance. In the Czech Republic Roma teens meet for a hip-hop class called "Rap for Peace Hip-Hop." Their instructor is Shameena Williams. She is a member of the all-female rap group Godessa, from South Africa. In the lessons, the teens learn to write rap music and use it to teach others about Roma culture. These teens Williams believes, can use music to change their lives and other people’s attitude.

  Assane N’diaye loves hip-hop music. He grew up in a small fishing village in Senegal. For a time, he was popular as a DJ in clubs in Dakar, the capital city of Senegal. Today, N’diaye lives in his village again. He formed a rap group with other family members. They rap about their lives as village fishermen and about working long, hard days and earning almost no money. Many people in their audience can understand these things.

 "Rap,” N’diaye says, "doesn't belong to American culture. It belongs here. It has always existed here, because of our pain and our hardships ..." N’diaye dreams of having a better life. He wants to make a CD and help his family. Despite his hardships, the music gives N’diaye hope.