If I had to choose who discriminates and defends structural racism in Finland the most, I’d come to the following conclusion: Many of those who claim to be for social equality are the worst enemies of our culturally and ethnically diverse community. Their silence is one matter that exposes them but also their defensive stands whenever they feel that their power and privilege threatened.
If they feel threatened, they’ll go on the defensive and do everything to ensure that your efforts come to naught. Status quo sees another day in Finland.
A disgraceful example of the latter was the moral panic displayed by politicians in the face of the attack by a knife-wielding foreigner in Turku that left two dead and eight injured.
Their knee-jerk reaction and opportunism were so evident that even YLE wrote about the moral panic that had struck Finland.
People who belong to racist and bigoted groups like Finland First, Suomen Sisu, Suomen Vastarintaliike, the Perussuomalaiset* and others, are at least sincere about their hatred of cultural diversity. They are easy to spot. But what about those that smile in your face and assure you with a poker face to not to worry since social equality is guaranteed by the law?
How can you spot these types of people? Easy. When they speak about how we all enjoy social equality and gender equality in this country, it’s usually a red herring.
While equality is paramount and an important value to defend in Finland, it is guaranteed by the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. Alarm bells should be ringing whenever they justify their discriminatory behavior by stating that you come from “a backward culture,” or that Muslim women are oppressed,
They don’t debunk myths but perpetuate them in order to disenfranchise, exert control over migrant and minority groups.
Read more about Denouncing Myths of Women’s Rights, Muslim Women, Feminism and Islamophobia in Europe here. Published by the European Network Against Racism.
If you believe such wise tales, that we’re all equal, you’ll wake up eventually when you look for a job. If you are lucky enough to get a job, you’ll discover that you have little power and are a second-class employee.
In a story Migrant Tales published in June, and using three practical nurses working at a large company in Helsinki, I highlighted how structural racism and discrimination work at one company.
Continue reading “In Finland the enemy is within and in the structures, not outside threatening us”
