The eagle never lost so much time, as when he submitted to learn of the crow.
Wiliam Blake
The worsening fortunes of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s National Coalition Party (NCP) hit hard in the latest Yle opinion poll, which showed the far-right Perussuomalaiset (PS)* overtaking the NCP in second place.
What is the lesson to be learned? A racist far-right party will never change its ways because it is in its DNA.
Under Orpo, racism has become normalized in Finland.
How is this horrible despite Orpo’s assurances of the government’s no tolerance for racism?
But what can you expect?
Purra riding on Orpo. Source: Mora Sixi
In a column headlined “Three years of zero tolerance for racism: zero results,” Helsingin Sanomat reporter Satu Vasantola shows how the government has advanced and strengthened racism thanks to coalition partners of the PS.
But the big question is not how Orpo has fed racism, but the media’s and politicians’ reaction.
You may ask how it is possible to utter a few meaningless anti-racism catchphrases and remain indifferent. We can thank the government and how it has protected institutional racism. That is why you can be racist and get away with it in Finland.
What to do? Keep fighting, inspire social movements, and remember what Argentinian human rights activist Taty Almeida said: “The only battle you lose is the one you abandon.”
In this snub to Navi Pillay for being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, Jani Mäkelä, the chair of the PS parliamentary group, parrots Tump’s disappointment. “The tradition of Nobel’s political ‘peace prize proudly continues.” Source: X
