Migrant Tales, Author at Migrant tales

How the Finnish media Others racialized pupils

Posted on June 2, 2022 by Migrant Tales

One of the casualties of the war in Ukraine will be social rights and the recognition of racialized people in Finland. Are we witnessing more aggressive reporting as a result?

Helsingin Sanomat published Wednesday a whole spread about how “over half of the students at several schools in Espoo don’t speak Finnish as their mother tongue.”

And it leads the story claiming that a researcher warns that what is happening in Espoo is a part of a “worrisome” European trend.

Sounds pretty sensationalist, right?

To top it off, Yle published a survey a day earlier showing that a majority of Russian speakers in Finland have a negative view of the country’s membership in Nato.

The Yle story labels Russians in such a toxic way that it feeds the Russophobia beast that resides inside many Finns.

**The story can only be accessed through a paywall.**

The Helsingin Sanomat, like the Yle survey, have a common message: Don’t trust “foreigners.” They are a problem.

Another question that the Helsingin Sanomat article raises is the far-right Perussuomalaiset (PS).* We have heard for a long time how the Islamophobic party has spread ethnonationalist views and the great replacement theory.

Homogeeninen kansallisvaltio? Ei kiitos!

Posted on May 31, 2022 by Migrant Tales

Olimme yllättyneet Perussuomalaisten (Ps) nuorison kolmannen varapuheenjohtajan Lauri Laitisen kirjoituksesta,* joilla hän puolusti kansallisvaltiota ja sen etnistä ja kielelistä homogeenisuutta.

Myös yllätyimme miksi Helsingin Sanomat julkaisi kirjoituksen jossa on niin paljon epäasiallisuus. Voisinko minä julkaista esim. kirjoituksen jossa vaadin naisten paluuta hellan ääreen?

Tällaiset ajatukset eivät ole mitään uutta. Natsi-Saksan sotarikollinen Alfred Rosenberg, joka tuomittiin ja hirtettiin Nuremburgin oikeudenkäynnin jälkeen, väitti, että Saksalaisten “arjalainen-rotu” voisi saavuttaa suuruuden vasta, kun se olisi päässyt eroon vähemmistöistä, kuten juutalaisista.

Rosenbergin kirjoituksia suositellaan yhä luettavaksi Suomen Sisulla.yhä luettavaksi Suomen Sisulla.

Voidaan kysyä kuinka homogeeniset kansallisvaltiot ovat “luonnollisia” jos niitä on luotu väkivallalla ja toisten ryhmien sortamisen tai hävittämisen kautta.

Vaikka Laitisen historian tuntemus tai valikoiva muistinmenetys on ilmeistä, hänen kirjoitus paljastaa huolestuvampaa seikan: Perussuomalaisten flirttailu tai pyrkimys “homogeenisen kansallisvaltioon.”

Vaikka Ps vastustaa kiivaasti kulttuurista ja etnistä moninaisuutta, he eivät tarjoa ratkaisuja siihen, miten homogeenisuus saavutetaan. Miten Riikka Purran ja Jussi Halla-ahon puolue aikoo pysäyttää kulttuurista moninaisuutta?

Ainoa vastaus, joka minulla tulee mieleen on valeuutisten ja populismin levittäminen ja/tai muuttamalla demokraattista järjestelmää kuten olemme nähneet Unkarissa ja Republikaaninen puoluessa Yhdysvalloissa.

Enrique Tessieri

Ahti Tolvanen

Suomen viharikosvastainen yhdistys ry

* Lähetimme vastine Helsingin Sanomille (27.5.) tuloksetta.

Migrant Tales celebrates 15th anniversary

Posted on May 29, 2022 by Migrant Tales

Migrant Tales celebrates its 15 anniversary today.

You can read our flipbook here or the PDF file.

What have all these years taught me? That not a single day in the struggle for social justice has been in vain.

Media inquiries: 040 8400773

Thank you for your support.

How institutional racism entrenches at a Finnish school

Posted on May 28, 2022 by Migrant Tales

How does institutional racism survive unchallenged at a Finnish school? An anonymous source got in touch with Migrant Tales and pointed out how structural or institutional racism survives at a Finnish school.

One of the most crucial factors for its survival aren’t surveys and legal ineffective and false assurances against discrimination and racism but what the principal or leadership of the school thinks about such social ills. Is anti-racism a low priority, and does the school management camouflage its racism usually with its silence?

In Finland, according to the source, it is easy to house racist views and seek cover in the protective structural racism infrastructure. One can even get money from the state for anti-discrimination work by throwing out catchphrases like “this will be good for integration.”

In many cases, the promise that “this will be good for integration” is false and misguided and feeds structural racism. Integration, or adaption, is a two-way process. Even so, this is usually forgotten.

The majority is not required to “integrate” but the newcomer is.

**Guiding principles of the EU National Plan Against Racism 2020-2025. One of the many important objectives is to tackle structural racism.**

Here are some of the factors that maintain structural racism at a Finnish school:

Peddling theories about ethnic replacement in Finland for political profit and blood

Posted on May 24, 2022 by Migrant Tales

I received a call from an old Migrant Tales reader who was distraught about a letter to the editor written by the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* Youth of Lappeenranta. The headline? “The nation-state is our best protection.”

Is it?

The reader continued: “How can Helsingin Sanomat publish something that openly excludes non-white Finns and other minorities in Finland? I’m worried about my child. What kind of a country are we heading? Nazi Germany?”

After reading the letter to the editor, I agreed and understood the reader’s concern. Like the Republicans in the US, the PS of Finland are openly subverting our Nordic democracy by replacing it with an autocratic system like Viktor Orbán’s Hungary.

Apart from excluding minorities in Finland and forgetting what racism and hatred of Nazi Germany in World War 2, the PS Youth claims the following:

Exposing white privilege in Finland #86: Maryan Abdulkarim and Finland’s amnesia

Posted on May 14, 2022 by Migrant Tales

I can’t remember. It’s not important anyway.

Finland’s political amnesia shrowded in denial and hostility comes in the form of knee-jerk reactions. Those knee-jerk reactions may appear by acting dumb to difficult questions or by destroying your credibility in public.

I met Maryan Abdulkarim many years ago and commended her bravery in the face of continuous suspicion and hostility. Many in this country see her bravery as a positive matter needed in a Finland that suffers from too many Teflon politicians and political amnesia.

After six years of being a host on the Yle television show Jälkivisaat raati, which discusses topical issues of the day, Abdulkarim decided to leave after the program decided to include former Perussuomalaiset (PS)* chairperson (1995-2017), Timo Soini, as its new host.

Will Nato membership for Finland be good for migrants and minority rights?

Posted on May 12, 2022 by Migrant Tales

If truth Is the first casualty in war, then the second casualty is the loss of your civil rights.

Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and Prime Minister Sanna Marin are due to announce Thursday that Finland should join Nato “without delay,” according to The Guardian.

While Finland’s security concerns are valid enough for its giant eastern neighbor and what’s happening in Ukraine, the rushed pace of our membership in Nato has stymied debate about Finland’s major foreign policy shift.

One of the matters that worry me is if our hardened stance against Russia will continue to fuel our xenophobic tendencies. As a Nato member, will Finland find understanding to promote social equality for minorities, including Muslims, Africans, and people of color?

Another aspect that raises question marks is the National Coalition Party (Kokoomus).

Even if Nato will improve our security, the new tougher face of Finland could have a negative impact on our Nordic values and how they are applied to different groups.

Disagree?

How the Finnish media frames “good” and “bad” refugees

Posted on May 4, 2022 by Migrant Tales

Länsiväylä is a community newspaper that lives off advertising revenues. One story on Ukrainian refugees raking a park in Kirkonnummi, a city near Helsinki, is another chapter in framing Ukrainian refugees as “good” refugees, while similar people from the Middle East are viewed as “bad” refugees.

One PS politician states:

“These Ukrainians are pretty different from many who sought asylum in Finland.

Thankfulness is shown in this way (raking a park lawn. See picture below.)

I hope that some of them remain in Finland when the war ends.

They are needed here.

I believe they will not be over-represented in crime statistics. “

Iraqi asylum seekers raking leaves in a story published in 2015. Source: *Yle*

Instead of framing “good” and “bad” migrants, it would be good for the media to show that we are as a society humane and ready to help others. If we can open our hearts to Ukrainians, why couldn’t we do the same for people from the Middle East and Africa?

Shadow racism in the happiest country

Posted on May 2, 2022 by Migrant Tales

It is quite true that when people come to a new country like Finland, they have a ”honeymoon” period – everything looks new and interesting. The first few months can feel like an extended holiday, and you experience the seasons, the holidays and the culture.

When it came time for me to look for work, and the first year, and then 20 months went by – it was so hard to explain to family and friends far away that there was just no way to find a job. One of my UK friends told me, ”Just take anything – even cleaning, and then other things will come”. They rarely did – whether I set my hopes high or low.

Fast forward another 18 years, and finding work is just as difficult, in fact, even harder for middle-aged people. Over the past winter, I tried looking into some new ideas through the ”Startup” groups, and then the TE office sent my details to the BusinessOulu office.

On the 1st of March, a lady from BusinessOulu called, and introduced herself as a ‘business coach’ and she started to ask me about my recent work and searches. I explained some of the challenges I have had, and almost dropped the phone when I heard her say to me – ”Oh, I think you are too old to work”. A few seconds passed before I reminded her that her own President was older in his mid-70s, but she brushed it off and said ”oh that’s different.”

I guess in Finland, if you are a wealthy and famous man, you have more rights to a job than an immigrant woman without an income.

Another of my challenges has been the ‘Brexit Punishment’ British immigrants get – many officials like to make things difficult for us, regardless of our politics. Finland, via Migri (The Finnish Immigration Service), decreed all British permanent residents reapply for another Residency (plus 54 euros) and have interview, and then wait for a decision. This is currently taking – not weeks, but months! My own is now scheduled to take 14 months.

Not a Muslim “terrorist” but a white Finn belonging to the far-right PS

Posted on May 1, 2022 by Migrant Tales

A 33-year-old driver driving at high speed in the city center ended up hitting several cars and crashing in front of a cafe on Pohjoiesplanadi on May Day Eve, according to Yle News. Three people were injured including the suspect.

The suspect, a member of the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party and a public servant at the ministry of economic affairs and employment, resisted arrest and yelled at the police.

In a video, he calls the police the devil and says repeatedly “amen” on the ground as he is being apprehended.

The suspect was a PS candidate in the country election held in January and on the same list as Riikka Purra, the chairperson of the far-right party.

The suspect is being held for aggravated endangerment of traffic safety, aggravated drunk driving, grievous bodily injury, resisting an official, and insubordination, the police said in a statement, according to Yle News.

**(Left) Snapshot of the suspect’s Instagram page and (right) Iltalehti reporting on what happened.**

Strangely, there has been no response from the PS on what happened.

If the person had been a Muslim, we all know how the PS and the Finnish media would have reacted.

Shouldn’t we demand, in the far-right PS example, an apology from all the party members for what happened?

The best news is that nobody was hurt seriously.