The first question that came to mind when I read a disturbing study of Russian, Somali and Kurdish immigrants by the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) is why now? If the THL study is the first-ever of its kind in Finland about immigrants’ health and living conditions, why has it taken such a long…
Month: November 2012
Husein Muhammed: Integraation lähdettävä vähemmistöjen sisältä
Husein Muhammed Helsingin Sanomat uutisoi (29.11.) Terveyden ja hyvinvoinnin laitoksen THL:n laajasta tutkimuksesta, jonka mukaan maahanmuuttajat voivat fyysisesti ja henkisesti huonosti. THL on selvittänyt kurdi-, somali- ja venäläistaustaisten vähemmistöjen hyvinvointia Suomessa. Erityisen huolestuttava tilanne on omalla yhteisölläni, kurdeilla. Asian myönteinen puoli on se, että tällä kertaa poikkeuksellisesti juuri näkymätön kurdivähemmistö nousi esille. Kahden muun…
Another scandal hits far-right Sweden Democrats
Sweden Democrat (SD) MP Lars Isovaara is resigning his seat after he spat at a parliamentary security guard, reports The Local. The latest scandal to the far-right party follows an earlier one this month after Swedish tabloid Expressen published a video of an SD MP who got rowdy in public and hurled racist and sexist…
Turun Sanomat: Is dual citizenship a threat to Finland?
An article on Turun Sanomat quotes Turku School of Economics professor, Kari Liuhto, stating that dual citizenship rights in Finland were a mistake in light of the recent child custody row that erupted in October between Finland and Russia. Liuhto believes that dual citizenship rights granted in 1999 in this country give Russia the opportunity…
Finnish Internet policeman spreads stereotypes on Twitter about the Roma
Finnish Internet policeman, Marko Forss, has been criticized for spreading stereotypes on Twitter about a Roma who tried to steal a frozen chicken from a market, according to tabloid Iltalehti. Shouldn’t Forss, who monitors hate sites and was named policeman of the year in 2011, know better? If it is surprising that Forss can make…
The PS’ anti-immigration message suffers a hard blow
Despite the fact that the debate in Finland on immigrants and immigration has taken a turn for the worse in some respects, it’s not as bad as it used to be before the April 2011 parliamentary elections and when Anders Breivik went on his murderous rampage on July 22, 2011. While anti-immigration politicians still want…
Julian Abagond: Spielberg’s Lincoln
By Julian Abagond “Lincoln” (2012) is a Steven Spielberg film about the passing of the Thirteenth Amendment, the one that freed the slaves. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis as Abraham Lincoln, Sally Field as his wife and Tommy Lee Jones as Radical Republican Congressman Thaddeus Stevens. Gloria Reuben plays Elizabeth Keckley, Mrs Lincoln’s dressmaker and friend. The…
Send kudos to those who speak out against racism
We must change the ever-adverse debate against immigrants and visible minorities in Finland. The way to end it is by giving our silence a voice and by sending kudos to those who have the courage to speak out against racism and prejudice. Source: Lake Harriet Community School. Migrant Tales would like to give kudos Tuija…
Turun Sanomat: Finland Democrats eye PS’ anti-immigration vote
The Finland Democrats, which bases its political agenda on the far-right Sweden Democrats, aims to become a new party and compete for the Perussuomalaiset (PS) party’s anti-immigration vote, reports Turun Sanomat. The creation of a new anti-immigration party reveals the ever-negative debate in Finland surrounding immigrants and immigration. The PS is the only party that…
Kouvolan Sanomat: Racism on the rise in the Finnish city of Kouvola
A city official that works with immigrants in refugees in the city of Kouvola, located 100km north of Helsinki, claims that racism and social exclusion are on the rise, reports Kourolvan Sanomat. The official, Tuija Värynen, said that complaints by immigrants of more racism and harassment rose clearly in March-April. Victims of racism can be…