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Month: August 2012

A letter to Jussi Halla-aho from Bashir Roble

Posted on August 25, 2012 by Migrant Tales

Perussuomalaiset MP Jussi Halla-aho,

Have you ever visited Somalia? Do you have any Somali friends? I know that both answers are negative because of the way you speak about my people and my country. MPs like you and others who think the same way, like Interior Minister Päivi Räsänen, belong to the same group. You spread hatred and prejudices about us while Räsänen makes certain that we live separated from our loved ones indefinitely.

Weren’t you recently fined by the Finnish Supreme Court for defaming our religion and inciting ethnic hatred?

Due to much tougher immigration rules, one must apply from abroad if they want to be reunited with their family in Finland. This is a very expensive and time-consuming process. Even those who live in this country, and who want their families to move Finland, are struggling to get a job in order to help their loved ones in war-ravaged Somalia.

Is Mogadishu a safe place to visit?

Mogadishu is a large coastal city and two times bigger than Helsinki. African Union Mission in Somalia  (AMISOM) troops control twelve districts of the capital while Al-shabaab still unfortunately controls four. Those places you saw on the news are districts controlled by AMISOM troops and which are heavily guarded by military tanks. One of them is Lido Beach, where people go swimming on Fridays or other evenings to relax.

You made a parliamentary question suggesting that our refugee status and rights of Somalis in Finland should be lifted in light of the YLE news story. True, after almost two decades of civil war, our city is slowly learning to stand on its feet again because of peace. Everything is evolving rapidly but peace is still a long way off and the situation in my country is still fragile. Everything could change overnight.

Do you know what it feels like to see your loved ones after a decade or two? Do you know what it feels like for your children, who never visited Somalia, to see their relatives for the first time? Such a moment of happiness is impossible to describe in words.

I am certain that many Somalis who live abroad would move back to our country and help in reconstruction. Somalis in Finland are no different. But you overlook an important point when you talk about Somalia and Somalis in Finland: We already have a large community of Somali-Finns who were born and raised in this country. Finland is as much their home as is Somalia and you never can deprive us of that right.

Everyone has the human right to live in a country, especially if that person is being persecuted politically or fleeing war. What about the 1.2 million Finns that moved to other countries from here between 1860-1999? Shouldn’t they be forced to return to Finland?

Where the person lives is a personal choice – not yours to make.

Bahir Roble

Breivik, Europe’s Counter-Jihadist mass killer, gets at least 21 years

Posted on August 24, 2012 by Migrant Tales

Anders Breivik, the Norwegian mass killer who shocked Europe and the world on July 22, 2011, was sentenced to at least 21 years in prison. The sentence by the Oslo district court is not only a relief to the loved ones of the 77 victims, but sends an important political message as well. 

The court considered the mass killer sane when he was on his murderous rampage. He was not  seen as a psychotic lone wolf as far-right and xenophobic groups would have wished.

Norway begins today the long process of healing the wounds inflicted by Breivik and the Counter-Jihadist ideology that encouraged him to carry out his killings.

According to researcher Toby Archer of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, Counter-Jihad is the new ideology found in the blogshpere, which is not anti-Semitic and does not associate itself with neo-Nazis.

Counter-Jihad movements could be seen as a modern expression of fascism spreading the same message of intolerance. In the 1930s it was Jews, today the scapegoats are Muslims.

The Norwegian mass killer’s deeds did great harm to anti-Islam and anti-immigration groups throughout Europe, especially in the Nordic region. In many respects, the political tide has turned after 22/7.

What Breivik did in the summer of 2011 is incomprehensible, but the smoking gun behind the bloodshed was far-right hate speech that warns Europe that it is being invaded by Islam.

Migrant Tales applauds the sentence by the Oslo district court.

 

Race and intelligence

Posted on August 24, 2012 by Migrant Tales

A BBC documentary, Race and Intelligence, asks if there is a racial* pecking order where white people are more intelligent than blacks. It seems unbelievable that this question continues to be asked in the twenty-first century, according to Rageh Omar of the BBC. 

One of the matters that has amazed me personally in Finland and elsewhere is how entrenched in the nineteenth century are some people’s views concerning race or ethnicity.

Neuroscientist Steven Rose says that ”race” is basically a social construct since its definition doesn’t match the biological definition.

According to him, there are greater gene frequencies on average between northern Welsh and Southern Welsh people. ”You wouldn’t call Northern Welch a different race of people from the Southern Welch people,” he said.

Omar asks the neuroscientist why there has been such a debate for such a long time.

Rose takes a deep breath before answering the question: “Because we live in a racist society. It’s very simple. Differences in intelligence between white people and black people wouldn’t make any sense unless you live in a racist society.”

The documentary shows that IQ tests do not test innate intelligence but are a reflection of how you are brought up in society. “[That is why it is important that] all children have access to the same aspirations,” according to Omar.

If IQ is  determined by economic and social factors, then we have nothing to be relived and comforted about, Omar concludes.

*Generally speaking, Europeans use ethnic group as opposed to the United States, where the term race is used.  In the United States, people from Europe were referred to as ethnic groups while blacks and Asians were “races.”  Blacks, like Latinos, consider themselves “a race.” Mexican-Americans call themselves la Raza, or “the Race.”

Halla-aho takes another swipe at Finland’s Somali community

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Migrant Tales

It’s pretty easy to note that one of the Perussuomalaiset (PS) party’s dynamic duo, Jussi Halla-aho and James Hirvisaari, are raising the stakes as the municipal elections near on October 28. We recently heard Hirvisaari throwing low punches at homosexuals and today Halla-aho would be ready to stop giving protection to Somalis, who come from a war-torn country.  

Halla-aho, who was fined in June by the Supreme Court for defaming religion and inciting ethnic hatred,  asked in a parliamentary question whether Somalis should receive protection from Finland since a hundred of them have visited Somalia.

The PS MP bases his question on a YLE news program.

Halla-aho’s views have been seriously challenged by some like Sofie From-Emmersberger, Finnish ambassador to Kenya and Somalia, who said the situation in the African country to be fragile.

Finland’s Somali Association vice president, Rage Abdulrahman, considered on Iltalehti that Halla-aho’s views “are sick and really off course.”

Even if Somalia were a totally safe country to live in today, how many would return? What about their children who grew up in Finland? Don’t they have the same rights, like their parents, to claim this country as their permanent home?

This Ilta-Sanomat billboard from August 8, 1996 reads: “Somalis to remain in Finland.” 

As the municipal elections near, the more vicious the message will be from parties like the PS and politicians like Halla-aho, Hirvisaari and others.

Should we be surprised?

Not really since there is nothing new under that PS political sun.

 

Those who loathe you are your supporters

Posted on August 22, 2012 by Migrant Tales

The biggest supporters of immigrants and visible minorities in Finland aren’t groups lobbying for their rights per se, but their enemies. Instead of tapping ourselves on the back for challenging a social ill like racism, we should thank Perussuomalaiset (PS) chairman Timo Soini for exposing in this country bigotry and isolationism in the raw.     

Without Soni, how would we have ever learned of politicians and aides like James Hirvisaari, Jussi Halla-aho, Jussi Niinistö, Ulla Pyysalo, Helena Eronen, Tommi Rautio, Teuvo Hakkarainen, Olli Immonen, Juho Eerola and a long list of others?

Instead of bringing out the worst in our society, these politicians and aides have empowered and brought the best in some of us. Migrant Tales is one of many examples of groups that have been energized by the present situation.

Our reaction as a society to racism, isolationism, hate speech and far-right extremism has been slow but encouraging.

When some spread with their extremist ideology their message of hate, they do a great service to our cause.  Taking into account how racism and isolationism boosted the PS to victory in April 2011, it’s clear that things have changed considerably since then.

How can you fumble a golden political opportunity that the PS had after the election and see it disintegrate before your eyes?  For this we must thank the PS and MPs like Teuvo Hakkarainen from day one.

The real threat to Finland are those politicians and groups that want to divide our society with the help of racism, prejudice and hate speech.

We are not being attacked and overrun by immigrants and refugees, the real threat comes from our backyard in the form of Soini, Hirvisari, Niinistö, Pyysalo, Ratio and many others.

Migrants’ Rights Network: Viral migrant-bashing

Posted on August 21, 2012 by Migrant Tales

Comment: This blog entry by Ruth Grove-White of the Migrants’ Rights Network, reminds me of the same arguments that anti-immigration groups use in Finland.  

_________________

By Ruth Grove-White

Chain emails spreading misinformation about migrants have been circulating far and wide – so what’s the secret of their long-life and how can we respond?

I was contacted this week by someone who had had a nasty chain message about pensioners, migrants and the benefits system posted on his Facebook wall. This was a viral message which we have heard about before as it, or a version of it, has been circulating over the past few years. The text he received read like this:

Dear Prime Minister The RT. Hon. David Cameron, MP.

I wish to ask you a Question:- “Is This True?”. I refer to the Pension Reality Check. Are you aware of the following?

The British Government provides the following financial assistance:-

BRITISH OLD AGED PENSIONER
(bearing in mind they worked hard and paid their Income Tax and National Insurance contributions to the British Government all their working life)
Weekly allowance: £106.00?
IMMIGRANTS/REFUGEES LIVING IN BRITAIN
(No Income Tax and National Insurance contribution whatsoever)
Weekly allowance: £250.00

BRITISH OLD AGED PENSIONER
Weekly Spouse Allowance: £25.00?
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS/REFUGEES LIVING IN BRITAIN
Weekly Spouse Allowance: £225.00

BRITISH OLD AGED PENSIONER
Additional Weekly Hardship Allowance: £0.00?
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS/REFUGEES LIVING IN BRITAIN
Additional Weekly Hardship Allowance: £100.00

A British old age pensioner is no less hard up than an illegal immigrant/refugee yet receives nothing

BRITISH OLD AGED PENSIONER
TOTAL YEARLY BENEFIT £6,000?
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS/REFUGEES LIVING IN BRITAIN
TOTAL YEARLY BENEFIT: £29,900

Please read all and then forward to all your contacts so that we can lobby for a decent state pension. After all, the average pensioner has paid taxes and contributed to the growth of this country for the last 40 to 60 years.  Sad isn’t it? Surely it’s about time we put our own people first.

Please share this, I JUST DID!

Familiar?

So how much of the information about migrants in this message is based on facts? Unsurprisingly, the answer is very little. Most migrants pay taxes if they are in employment like anyone else. Overall,analysis suggests that migrants make a small positive contribution to the UK economy and in particular to key growth sectors like healthcare, education, financial services and many more.

Refugees have the same right to access benefits and to work in the UK as a British citizen – no more and no less. Irregular migrants do not have the right to work in the UK and have no right to access benefits – but it is thought that many end up paying tax and NI as their ability to work depends on use of false National Insurance cards.

Both the ‘Weekly Spouse Allowance’ of £225 and the ‘Weekly Hardship Allowance’ that ‘illegal immigrants and refugees’ receive according to this email seem to be works of fiction.

Despite containing such confused information, this email, or a version of it, has been widely shared across the internet – so much so that it was the subject of a Parliamentary briefing paper in April this year. According to this, the email has a long and chequered history:

The House of Commons Library first became aware of the email in early 2010 but it has a much longer pedigree. It contains text from a protest email which has been circulating in Australia for some time now, but which may have originated in Canada. Versions also circulate in the United States, and elements even appear in protest emails as far afield as India. The UK version has been adapted, somewhat crudely, for a domestic audience by someone or some organisation unknown. The figures quoted bear no relation whatsoever to the situation in the United Kingdom.

Given this background, it seems that it is the sentiment behind the message that keeps it in circulation rather than accurate facts. This message pits one group experiencing hardship (pensioners) against another (refugees and migrants), suggesting that compassionate policies for these groups operate according to the rules of a zero sum game. As one benefits, the other suffers. True? No. But it seems to be intuitively persuasive, and especially at a time when austerity measures mean that there is a widespread sense of unfairness among people who are feeling the pinch of conracting state support. Pensioners are undoubtedly facing serious challenges at the moment, facing cuts to tax allowances and other benefits. It is right to raise awareness of their plight – but not at the expense of other vulnerable groups.

If you receive emails of this sort, please take the time to set the sender straight about some of the facts – and to point out that this approach will never have the effect of building compassion and understanding but instead encourages the opposite.

Read original story here.

This piece was reprinted by Migrant Tales with permission.

Book review: “The Myth of the Muslim Tide”

Posted on August 21, 2012 by Migrant Tales

One of Migrant Tales’ aims has been to bust urban myths about immigrants and minorities. A book published last week by Alfred Knopf Canada, The Myth of the Muslim Tide, aims to do just that concerning Muslims. 

Writes Doug Saunders, the author of the book: “In the U.S., anti-Muslim bigotry has reached such alarming levels that four of the leading Republican presidential candidates went mostly unchallenged as they spread patently false notions about Muslims and Islam, often at the behest of their rich Islamophobic funders.”

Saunders tackles a number of myths like: Islamization and high birth rates; the majority of immigrants are and will be Muslims; Muslims want to live in ghettoes; Muslims are not loyal to their host countries; as well as others.

Read original book review by Haroon Siddiqui here.

 

Siirtolaisuusinstituutti: ”Mun stadi” kertoo Helsingistä somalinuorten näkökulmasta

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Migrant Tales
Siirtolaisuusinstituutin syksyn toinen kirjauutuus esittelee siirtolaisnuorison ajatuksia Suomesta ja suomalaisuudesta. Kirjan tekemiseen osallistuneita nuoria yhdistää se, että heidän vanhempansa ovat kotoisin Somaliasta ja että he ovat koko lapsuutensa tai ainakin suuren osan siitä asuneet Suomessa. Kirjassa nuoret tarkastelevat sanoin ja kuvin suhdettaan uuteen kotikaupunkiinsa Helsinkiin.
Here is a link to YLE about the book.
”Mun Stadi” tuo lukijan tulkittavaksi seitsemän nuoren maalaaman kuvan, jossa suomalaisuus, siirtolaisuus, etnisyys ja paikallisuus näyttäytyvät mielenkiintoisesti uudessa valossa. Suomessa syntyneet somalinuoret kokevat pääosin olevansa kotonaan Helsingissä mutta tavalla, jolla ei välttämättä ole vielä nimeä: ”kai me ollaan jonkinlainen uusi sukupolvi suomalaisia ja itse kukin vähän kaikkea muuta”. Suomalaisuus ja stadilaisuus määrittyvät tätä kautta väkisinkin uudelleen erilaisina alakulttuurisina merkityksinä.
Perinteisesti toisen polven siirtolaisten on ajateltu integroituvan vahvasti uuden kotimaansa tapoihin vanhempiensa esimerkin vastaisesti. ”Mun Stadin” perusteella Helsingin somalinuoret ovat enemmänkin välitilassa uuden ja vanhan kulttuurin välillä. Afrikkalainen yhteisöllisyys ja uskonnollisuus painavat edelleen vaakakupissa mutta toisaalta uusi kotiseuturomantiikka ja suomalainen tapa toimia ja ajatella ovat jo muokanneet heidän identiteettiään: ”Somalialaisissa perheissä on erilainen tapa kasvattaa lapsia kuin suomalaisissa, mut loppupeleissä, kun asuu Suomessa niin monta vuotta niin kasvatustapa länsimaistuu”.
Mukaan mahtuu myös nuorekasta kritiikkiä lähtökulttuuria ja uuden maan oloja kohtaan. ”Mun Stadi” onkin mielenkiintoinen ajankuva 2010-luvun Suomesta, jossa maahanmuutto ja siihen liittyvät uudet ilmiöt ovat olleet voimakkaasti esillä julkisessa keskustelussa viime vuosina.
? SUORA TEKIJÄKONTAKTI: HELENA OIKARINEN-JABAI, P. 044-089 8757. EMAIL: [email protected] 
? MUUT MEDIAKYSELYT: SIIRTOLAISUUSINSTITUUTIN TIEDOTTAJA JARI NIKKOLA, P. 02-284 0470. EMAIL: [email protected]
?  KIRJATILAUKSET: SIIRTOLAISUUSINSTITUUTTI SATU LÖPPÖNEN. P. 02-284 0440. EMAIL:SATU.LOPPONEN@UTU.FI

Savon Sanomat: Vain super kelpaa

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Migrant Tales

Aivan kuten Tuhkimo, joka nukkui syvässä unessa ja odotti komean prinssin suudelmaa, Suomen maahanmuuttajavastaiset toivovat samanlaista kohtaloa, kun puhutaan uusista ulkomaalaisista asukkaista. Tavalliset ulkomaalaiset eivät heille kelpaa – ainoastaan supermaahanmuuttajat saisivat tulla maahamme.

Voiko joku poliitikko tai poliittinen puolue vastustaa tai kokonaan kieltää maahanmuuttoa globalisoituneessa maailmassa? Onko tämä mahdollista, jos meidän taloudellinen hyvinvointimme on kokonaan riippuvainen suhteestamme ulkomaailmaan?

Juuri ne poliittiset tahot, jotka vastustavat jyrkästi maahanmuuttoa tai muiden vähemmistöjen oikeuksien lisäämistä, puhuvat erityisen paljon supermaahanmuuttajista, vaikka he eivät ilmaise asiaa niin selkeästi.

Asia saattaa ilmetä seuraavalla tavalla, jos vaikka kysyisimme asiasta ns. maahanmuuttokriittisiltä kansanedustajilta:

”Miksi vastustatte maahanmuuttoa Suomeen?”

”En vastusta maahanmuuttoa. Haluan sellaisen maahanmuuton, joka on hyvä Suomelle eli jossa henkilö ei elä toisten verotuloilla ja noudattaa lakeja.”

Vaikka on selvää, että suurin osaa Suomen uusista asukkaista haluaa työllistyä ja rakentaa paremman tulevaisuuden itselleen, keitä nämä ns. supermaahanmuuttajat ovat?

Tämä lista saattaa auttaa:

He ovat pohjoiseurooppalaisia valkoisia maahanmuuttajia. He ovat kristittyjä. He ovat heteroja.

Heillä on hyvä koulutus, runsaasti työkokemusta ja käytöstapoja. He eivät koskaan valita mistään, ainoastaan sopeutuvat Suomeen.

He tekevät työnsä hyvin eivätkä ole koskaan työttömiä. Heille maksetaan vähemmän palkkaa, mutta silti he tekevät kaksikertaisen määrän työtä tavallisiin valkoisiin suomalaisiin verrattuna.

He olisivat tarvittaessa valmiita käyttämään hihamerkkejä auttaakseen poliisia jahtaamaan rikollisia tehokkaammin. Heidän kulttuurinsa ei näy missään julkisella paikalla. He ovat valmiita luopumaan omasta menneisyydestä.

Heidän lapsensa puhuvat vain suomea. Jos he puhuvat toista ulkomaalaista kieltä, kuten venäjää, se tapahtuu vain kodissa neljän seinän sisällä. Vanhemmat oppivat suomea supernopeasti (alle vuodessa), koska he ovat supermaahanmuuttajia ja superälykkäitä (mutta eivät niin älykkäitä kuin suomalaiset) .

Heidän suomenkielentaitonsa on niin täydellinen, että siinä kuuluu vain pieni tarpeellinen korostus kulttuurisena hajurakona ”heidän” ja ”meidän” välillä.

Ainakin heidän lapsensa hyväksytään nopeasti ja vaivattomasti yhteiskuntaamme, koska he ovat näkymättömiä maahanmuuttajia.

Supermaahanmuuttajista tulee mieleeni Juan Bautista Alberdi (1810–1884), jota on kutsuttu Argentiinan maahanmuuton isäksi. Ilman hänen liberaaleja ja avarakatseisia näkemyksiään olisi ollut vaikeaa hahmottaa selkeä ja laaja kuva siitä, mikä rooli maahanmuutolla tulisi olemaan maan väestöllisessä ja taloudellisessa kehityksessä.

Vaikka Alberdi ei puhunut supermaahanmuuttajista, hänellä oli hyvin romanttisia näkemyksiä, millaista väkeä pitäisi päästää asuttamaan Argentiinaan 1800-luvun puolessavälissä.

Hän kirjoitti: ”Haluammeko sopeuttaa englantilaisen vapauden, ranskalaisen kulttuurin, eurooppalaisen ja pohjoisamerikkalaisen korkean työmoraalin? Tuokaamme heidät elävinä kappaleina, heidän kansansa tavat, ja asuttakaamme heidät tänne.”

Argentiinaan tuli paljon siirtolaisia vuosina 1881-1914. Maa houkutteli yli 4,2 miljoonaa maahanmuuttajaa Euroopasta. Näinä vuosina Argentiina oli toiseksi suosituin maa siirtolaisille Yhdysvaltojen jälkeen.

Vuonna 1914 49,4 prosenttia Buenos Airesin asukkaista oli ulkomaalaisia. Tämä luku on kuitenkin ”pieni” jos vertaamme maahanmuuttajien osuutta tämän päivän Qatarissa (86,5%), Yhdistyneissä Arabiemiirikunnissa (70,0%) ja Kuwaitissa (68,8%).

Suomessa ulkomaalaisten osuus väestöstä on 3,4 prosenttia eli 183 133 henkilöä.

 

Vaikka Alberdi halusi maahan supermaahanmuuttajia, eli niitä ”eläviä esimerkkejä eurooppalaisesta sivistyksestä,” maahan tulevat uudisasukkaat olivat jotain aivan muuta: köyhiä ja lukutaidottomia työläisiä, poliittisesti vainottuja ihmisiä, anarkisteja ja rikollisia.

Vaikka Argentiinaan tuli miljoonia siirtolaisia etupäästä Italiasta ja Espanjasta, heitä yhdisti yksi tärkeä asia: halu saavuttaa parempi elintaso.

Suomalaiset perustivat vuonna 1906 Koillis-Argentiinaan siirtokunnan nimeltä Colonia Finlandesa. Siirtokunta alkoi hiipua 1930-luvulla suuren laman aikana, kun maahanmuutto Suomesta tyrehtyi ja nuoret muuttivat pois Colonia Finlandesasta kaupunkeihin.

Pelkään kovasti, ettei niitä supermaahanmuuttajia, joita jotkut poliitikot Suomeen toivovat, löydy mistään ainakaan suurina määrinä.

Mitä sitten olisi tehtävä? Mielestäni olisi korkea aika lakata kiistelemästä siitä, onko maahanmuutto hyvä tai paha asia. Pitäisi puhua olennaisista asioista, kuten siitä, miten meidän tulisi rakentaa Suomen hyvinvointia.

Meillä on jo pieni, mutta kasvava moniarvoinen yhteisö ja siksi on tarpeellista tänään rakentaa kaksisuuntaisia siltoja eri ryhmien väillä. Koska suomalainen yhteiskunta perustuu tasa-arvoon ja suvaitsevaisuuteen, ainoa tapa rakentaa vahvaa Suomea tulevaisuudessa on kannustaa vastavuoroista hyväksyntää ja kunnioitusta, sekä edistää tasavertaisia mahdollisuuksia.

Olisi tärkeä puhua ratkaisuista eikä vain ongelmista.

On selvää, että olemme tänä päivänä eksyksissä, eikä meillä ole kykyä hahmottaa iso kuvaa kasvavasta moniarvoisuudestamme.

Supermaahanmuuttajien haikaileminen, eriarvoisuuden edistäminen (maahanmuuttajien oikeudet ovat vähäisempiä kuin valkoisten suomalaisten oikeudet), ja syntipukkien etsiminen ovat osoituksia siitä, kuinka hukassa jotkut ovat Suomessa.

Tämä ei ole oikea tie, ei ainakaan Suomen tie.

Alkuperäisen blogikirjoituksen voi lukea tästä.

(Migrant Tales, August 19, 2012): Sleeping Beauty and Prince Charming, the super immigrant

Posted on August 19, 2012 by Migrant Tales

Migrant Tales insight: Even if the op-ed was published about 10 years ago, too many politicians and officials continue to falsely believe that “super immigrants” will save the country from its low birth rates, aging population, and ever-present racism. 

See also: The world’s happiest country faces a labor and talent crunch


THIS OP-ED PIECE WAS UPDATED.

Is it possible that in 2012 we have politicians who are totally against immigration? We actually have quite a few of them in Finland. While all political parties have these types of politicians, none of them have so many as the Perussuomalaiset (PS)*. 

Certainly, these types of politicians won’t tell you directly that they are against immigration to Finland. That would sound too radical and make them vulnerable and force them to lose votes.

What they will tell you, however, is totally a different story. With poker faces, they will state that they are not against immigration but against immigration they consider harmful to Finland.

These politicians sound like they are reading to you the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, when Prince Charming  wakes the beautiful princess with a kiss from her deep sleep. Anti-immigration politicians and parties don’t speak of Sleeping Beauty per se, but about super immigrants.

Sleeping Beauty (anti-immigration  view of Finland) , Prince Charming (super immigrant) and other pro- and anti-immigration forces. In this famous Walt Disney fairy tale, everyone is white except for the evil witch, who is almost white. 

Who are these super immigrants?

  • They function perfectly as a group even if humans are far from perfect
  • They are white northern Europeans, some Far East Asia groups like the Chinese (white Russians are excluded)
  • They commonly belong to the Christian faith
  • They are heterosexuals
  • They are skilled professionals and well-behaved
  • They adapt quickly and without problems to our way of life
  • They are never unemployed (they are against social welfare and handouts)
  • They are paid less than  Finnish employees
  • They don’t mind wearing sleeve badges to help police ethnically profile more effectively
  • They never practice their culture in public spaces
  • Their children only speak their parents’ language at home
  • Their parents speak near-perfect Finnish
  • Cultural difference and slight Finnish accents are fine because they allow us to distinguish who is “us” and “them”

Let’s stop kidding ourselves about these so-called super immigrants. They may exist but not in the numbers that a party like the PS or other anti-immigrant groups would like to see moving to Finland.

If you are waiting for these types of people to inhabit Finland in the near future, you might as well turn into Sleeping Beauty.

A column about super immigrants will appear next week in Savon Sanomat, Kainuun Sanomat and Karjalainen. 

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