Sunday’s German election told us an important fact: It pays to attack migrants relentlessly. Even if we do not want to make direct references to the rise of the Nazis in 1933 and the devastating impact it still has on us, we are entering a new phase in Europe that has its past troubled history sprinkled all over it.
We are seeing the same fear-mongering that we saw against the Jews and other minorities in Germany, the UK, France and many other European countries before the outbreak of World War 2. Our brazen cowardice, opportunism and lust for power are drving towards such a disaster.
The great problem in Europe is not only our incapability to see the elephant in the room but to react to it. Most Western leaders will play down the fascist shift of Donald Trump’s administration, which is only a sign of weakness and moral decay.
But most of Europe has a solution to all of its woes: Blame it on the migrants, especially racialized migrants.
What will governments do after sucking up and forming alliances with the far right when they discover that scapegoating migrants offers no solutions but will only contribute to chronic labor shortages?
Will the next step be war to cover their denial and ignorance?
If there is one matter that one can agree with doomsday far-right anti-immigration politicians, it is that Europe and the developed world will be swamped in this century by people fleeing ever-worsening climate disasters, and civil strife.
What is hypocritical, even criminal, about the latter is that Europe and the developed world are responsible for placing people in such peril.
The EU’s answer to such a situation is the usual recipe of denial, building higher walls, more-effective surveillance, and violent pushbacks.
Finland’s answer, like that of Europe’s Frontex, to climate refugees is a fence, wishful thinking, and the populist rhetoric of politicians. Source: Kauppalehti.
With the rise of the far right in Europe and growing suspicion of outsiders gaining strength, it proves that Europe is in a state of flux. It has no answer to the migration crisis except building higher walls and toxic anti-immigration rhetoric. Europe will blame everything on migrants and asylum seekers.
Even so, the disasters suffered by people outside our borders were created for centuries by our greed and short-term answers, starting from our colonial aspirations and destructive wars. We destroy countries in regions like the Middle East and complain why people are fleeing the very homes we helped to destroy.
For those who luckily make it to Europe, are faced with walls of exclusion.
Europe is in a state of denial and our unpreparedness will cost us dearly.
In an interview with the Washington Post, political scientist Francis Fukuyama, who authored The End of History and the Last Man (1992), gives his views on the Ukraine War and what it may imply for Russia and Vladimir Putin.
He argues that the rise of far-right parties in Europe and Donald Trump in the United States have received fuel from Putin. He mentioned a few of these politicians but leaves out Jussi Halla-aho and the Perussuomalaiset* party.
Francis Fukuyama: “I think Putin represents something very sinister in the minds of many people in the West.
A lot of people in Western democracies see that in their country, there’s a right–wing nationalist politician that is either supporting Putin or acts a lot like Putin. Matteo Salvini in Italy; Éric Zemmour, Marine Le Pen in France; Viktor Orban in Hungary. And Donald Trump.
So I do think there is a kind of awareness of more liberal-minded people that this alternative also exists in their country.”
The European Islamophobia Report 2020 was published on December 29. Below is the Finland chapter of the report. The editors for the report are Dr. Enes Bayrakli and Dr. Farid Hafez.
While the government of Prime Minister Sanna Marin has tried to roll back some of the draconian immigration law measures of the previous government, Islamophobia continues to be an obstacle in treating Muslims and other minorities as equal members of society.
The big question will be the 2023 parliamentary elections and if the National Coalition Party (Kokoomus), which is flirting with the far-right Finns Party (PS), will emerge – as recent opinion polls suggest – as the winner and form the country’s next government.
The actions and messages of Kokoomus are a cause for genuine concern for Finland’s culturally diverse community, especially Muslims.
In Finland, officials are quick to remind newcomers about gender equality, but too little is mentioned about equity for everyone irrespective of their background. Finding a job is part of the integration program, but too little is mentioned about discrimination at work and in the labor market. Due process still takes too long, and there are big questions about how seriously Finland sees institutional racism, the rise of fascism, and other social ills like hate speech.
Ensuring that Finland is not a hostile place to minorities is paramount and ensures that social ills like Islamophobia will not undermine the country’s democratic institutions.
A report by the Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) warns that Norway and Europe may suffer from terrorist attacks in the next few months against Muslims, Jews, and the LGBTQ community, reports Yle, citing the Norwegian Police Security Service.
PST cites the Christchurch attack against two mosques in New Zealand in March as a source which may encourage some to act.
Apart from alligator tears from then Foreign Minister Timo Soini, PS Youth’s Johannes Sipola blamed in the tweet below the killings in New Zealand on multiculturalism.
Even PS Chairperson Jussi Halla-aho played down what happened in New Zealand in March. He considered the attack due to mental health or social marginalization.
Considering that “quiet” Norway suffered its worst attack after World War 2 on July 22, 2011, when Anders Breivik murdered 77 innocent victims, and a new attack happened in August when a young white Norwegian did not succeed at killing Muslims at the Al-Noor Islamic Center near Oslo.
Writes PST: “Some right-wing groups internationally will insist on urging their members to carry out terrorist attacks. The groups are spreading terrorist propaganda as part of their goal to launch a revolution and a racial war.”
What about Finland? Has the Finnish Security Intelligence Service (SUPO) conducted a similar assessment? I’m certain that they have but why haven’t they warned the public?
Considering that radical right groups like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* are spreading the very hatred that fuels and feeds white terrorism, this may discourage them from being too public about the threat.
Finnish exceptionalism and simple ignorance on the impact of racism may also be factors.
Words have consequences and those words are copied by the PS and other hard-right groups. Apart from fueling racism and discrimination, it’s pretty clear that labeling Muslims and Africans as a threat to Finland is the poison pill that these white terrorists like to hear.
All of the PS MPs who got elected this year used Islamophobia or some form of populist anti-immigration rhetoric in their campaigns.
Racism and and spreading ethnic hatred has become so normal in Finland that the PS’ first vice-president, Riikka Purra, asks with a poker face if it is racist to call an African rapist “human scum.”
Indeed, it is racist, especially when the person making such a comment is white and belongs to an Islamophobic party like the PS.
As words have consequences so does spreading racism. Racism is like a rabid dog that populist anti-immigration politicians use to impress their voters. They walk around with this dog but keep it on a short leash. Since the dog knows no master, it can bite its owner hard.
The rise in hate crime in Finland is already one indication that should start to worry.
Let’s hope that this concern turns to action to tackle all forms of hatred.
* The far-right Perussuomalaiset (PS) party imploded on June 13, 2017, into two factions, the PS and New Alternative, which is now called Blue Reform. In the last parliamentary election, Blue Reform has wiped off the Finnish political map when they saw their numbers in parliament plummet from 18 MPs to none. A direct translation of Perussuomalaiset in English would be something like “basic” or “fundamental Finn.” Official translations of the Finnish name of the party, such as Finns Party or True Finns, promote in our opinion nativist nationalism and racism. We, therefore, at Migrant Tales prefer to use in our postings the Finnish name of the party once and after that the acronym PS.
Even if far-right parties made some gains in the European elections on Sunday, their project to disrupt and destroy the EU was crashed by the Green wave that swept Europe.
To Halla-aho, Huhtasaari, Salvini, Le Pen, Farage I have a simple message: Your brand of fear-mongering and scapegoating is going down. We will make sure that your attacks on our democratic institutions and racism are remembered by future generations, our children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. We will not forget what you said, what you did, and who you are/were.
We will not also forget the near-silent mainstream politicians throughout Europe and the white media, nearly toothless when migrants and minorities are attacked and scapegoated, that allowed the far right to raise its ugly head.
And that is what they exactly did in the 1930s that sparked World War 2. My Bostonian uncle Alexander Cherkassky, who lived part of his childhood in Mikkeli, Finland, died on April 24, 1945, a day before victory was proclaimed in Italy against fascism and Nazi Germany.
Hillary Clinton says that migration is the main reason for feeding European populism.
Migrant Tales disagrees. Europe is such a racist region plagued by its colonial and post-colonial history that was and still has its hands drenched in genocide and exploitation.
Don’t blame the migrants, Clinton. Blame European racism for the rise in populism.
Migrant Tales insight: Aleksander Hemon states in his eloquent article about fascism that we should not waste any time debating but that “it is a set of actions to fight.” In the essay, he admits feeling guilty and ashamed of his cowardice and naivety that just talking to a fascist might bring him back.
In Finland, too many wrongly believe that by debating with fascists (like those found in the Perussuomalaiset party* in parliament) and racists will bring people back to their senses.
They won’t, forget it. The only way is to fight back and defend our values tooth and nail.
One teacher said that racists can make racist statements because “it’s how democracy works.”
True, but democracy requires you to stand up and defend those values that fascists and racists want to destroy.
QUOTE OF THE DAY:
“Only those safe from fascism [and racism] and its practices are likely to think that there might be a benefit in exchanging ideas with fascists [and racists].”
* The Perussuomalaiset (PS) party imploded on June 13 into two factions, the PS and New Alternative, which is now called Blue Reform. Despite the name changes, we believe that it is the same party in different clothing. Both factions are hostile to cultural diversity. One is more open about it while the other is more diplomatic.
A direct translation of Perussuomalaiset in English would be something like “basic” or “fundamental Finn.” Official translations of the Finnish name of the party, such as Finns Party or True Finns, promote in our opinion nativist nationalism and racism. We, therefore, at Migrant Tales prefer to use in our postings the Finnish name of the party once and after that the acronym PS.
We have commented that President Donald Trump’s erratic and autocratic style may be a curse on the US but a blessing for Europe since his style may scare away potential voters who don’t want far-right politicians like Geert Wilders, Marine Le Pen, Frauke Petry, Jussi Halla-aho and others.
The latest news coming out of the White House is a direct attack against the First Amendment by barring the Guardian, New York Times, Politico, CNN and others from a press briefing.
