The February 1981 issue was the second of eleven newsletters that came out. The Foreign Student played an important role in giving migrants a voice during a period when foreigners were supposed to remain quiet about their civil rights. Published in 1981, I wouldn’t have used today words like “Gypsy” and “Lapp” to refer to…
Tag: immigration
Finland’s fictitious search for the ideal foreigner
Contrary to the last three parliamentary elections in 2011, 2015, and 2019, the upcoming parliamentary election on April 2 is different for several reasons: war rages in the Ukeraine, Finland has sought Nato membership, economic growth, and chronic labor shortages are just a few. Apart from labeling people from outside the EU as “harmful” migrants,…
Voting down the Perussuomalaiset in April is the best indication that matters have changed for the better
Despite the fake claims by parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)*, Finland has historically done everything possible to halt foreigners from moving to Finland. It was not until 1983, or 65 years that Finland passed its first aliens act. Restrictions on foreigners and foreign companies were the rule. Did you know that even if women had…
QUOTE OF THE DAY: A migrant’s journey never ends and may last generations
“When a migrant embarks on a journey, he may not realize that the journey the migrant is on never ends and that he is part of another journey that a relative began generations ago. Thus a migrant’s journey may begin during our lifetime, but it rarely ends during our lifetime. Your relatives, those who are…
A Migrant Tales style guide to writing about migration: avoid words that hide our racism and denial
After over twenty years in journalism and writing for some of the world’s most prestigious publications and having worked as a foreign correspondent in countries like Finland, Italy, Colombia, and others, I have learned a thing or two about journalistic style and correctness. On top of my journalistic experience, I am a sociologist who has…
I am a migrant and I am proud of who I am
With all the demonizing of migrants by xenophobic and Islamophobic parties, one is required to yell louder and more determinedly: I am proud of my roots, I am proud of my migrant background.
Some asylum seekers in Finland live in crowded rooms and in dreadful conditions
Below are two picture and a short note from an asylum seeker called Adam who came to Finland in 2012. During his long and painful sojourn in this country, being locked up for a year at the Joutseno immigration removal center to being an undocumented migrant, Adam is now staying at an asylum reception center in the Greater Helsinki area.
Argentina’s issues with whitewashing and genocide. Like the crimes committed during the dirty war, they too should be addressed.
When I was young, I remember very well the racism of the Argentines. A friend of mine from Rosario highlighted this racism in the following example: An porteño (a resident of the capital Buenos Aires) told his friends that he was going to travel to South America as if Buenos Aires was surrealistically still a part of Europe.
Inspired by Donald Trump’s racism in USAmerica, Argentina’s President Mauricio Macri stokes the fires of xenophobia
Argentina has a reputation among some Latin Americans of being a racist country. The election of President Donald Trump has emboldened politicians like Argentinean President Mauricio Macri to parrot his USAmerican counterpart.
Migrants’ Rights Network: Press editorialising rather than reporting facts on immigration – report
A new report finds that nearly half of all newspaper immigration stories since 2006 relied on statements or arguments made by the journalist, rather than reporting the views of external sources such as policy-makers, NGOs, community organizations or academics.