Tag: Perussuomalaiset

Jussi Halla-aho’s broken record: destroy cultural and ethnic diversity

Posted on by Migrant Tales

We hear over and over again the same anti-immigration diatribe by politicians like Perussuomalaiset (PS) MP Jussi Halla-aho, who complain constantly about too liberal immigration policy and multiculturalism.

Näyttökuva 2014-4-11 kello 12.21.00

PS MP Jussi Halla-aho would like to restrict free movement of people in Europe and tighten migration policy if elected Euro MP, according to Swedish-language daily HBL. Read full story here.

Even if the Finnish media and politicians consider Halla-aho near-invincible, he is very vulnerable. What would happen if the PS return to the single-digit-percentage league like before the 2011 parliamentary elections?

Would Halla-aho face the same fate as his ideological soul mate MP James Hirvisaar, who has been largely forgotten by the media after he was sacked from the PS in October?

In the same far-right populist style as other politicians in his dubious group, Halla-aho, who was sentenced for ethnic agitation, whines near-constantly about multiculturalism but does not offer any solutions. He does not give any solutions because he’d lose a lot of support if he did.

Much of the prejudices that Finns house today are parroted by Halla-aho. One of these is his hostility of our cultural and ethnic diversity. If he ever got enough power and backing, it would be only a matter of time when he’d expose his dark side on how to maintain Finland white. He’d suggest something that Dutch anti-immigration extremist Geert Wilders said recently.

Wilders outraged many people in Holland in March and much of the political establishment, including his own party, by telling a crowd of supporters that he would find a way for Holland to have fewer Moroccans.

It’s Halla-aho and his kind that should get with the times. Finland was, is and will be ethnically and culturally diverse.

 

Finnish tabloid media’s dubious “achievment” is spreading intolerance

Posted on by Migrant Tales

The Finnish tabloid media has the dubious “honor” for having spread intolerance in Finland by giving populists and racists inflated respectability and importance. If we look at some of the billboards that tabloids published in the 1990s, it’s clear that they were responsible for spreading racism and prejudice in Finland.  

Take for instance the most recent ad on Iltalehti’s website about Timo Soini, the right-wing populist leader of the Perussuomalaiset (PS) party who is hostile to migrants and minorities. The ad asks readers to buy the weekend edition to read about Soini’s “opening up” and soft loving dad side.

Soft loving dad side? Certainly everyone loves his family. But when it comes to loving others that’s where clear lines are drawn.

Soini, who likes to portray himself as a political leader who has not helped racists and ultra-nationalists to get political power, makes it clear that he is against gay marriage and abortion. This fact speaks volumes about what kind of a hell Finland would be if he ever became prime minister.

Näyttökuva 2014-4-6 kello 11.18.38

What about if I posted the following billboards below to contrast with the one above? How do two from 1994 and 1996 contrast with what Iltalehti claims about Soini?

Tabloids may have a short memory but many in this country, especially migrants and visible minorities, remember many of the insults and outright hostility against them. Such intolerance is daily and not difficult to forget.

l_1084-medium1

This billboard from 1996 by Iltalehti’s rival, Ilta-Sanomat, claims that those Somalis that got asylum in Finland in the early 1990s will remain permanently in Finland.

L_1062-Medium

This billboard claims that Somalis conned authorities into giving them asylum. In 1994, Somali was absorbed in a terrible civil war that has been going on to date.

.

Anti-immigration populist parties are a menace to democracy, ethnic and cultural diversity

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Migrant Tales has never hid its criticism of parties that base their message on populism, scapegoating minorities and nationalism. If such political parties ever got power, it’s doubtful that they’d know what to do with it except polarize our society more than before. 

Anti-immigration and nationalistic parties are masters at scapegoating because they are incompetent at doing anything right. Since they usually fail at what they do, they blame others for their failures.

Blaming migrants and minorities for unemployment and the recession are classic examples. It not only reveals who they are, but the fact that they don’t have any credible and workable political program.

How can a party that victimizes minorities and polarizes society be taken seriously?

There are already some disturbing signs what these far-right and right-wing anti-immigration parties would do if they got power. In Holland we heard Geert Wilders assure supporters that he’d make it possible that there would be less Moroccans in his country.

Ukip leader Nigel Farage, whom the Perussuomalaiset (PS) of Finland consider their political soul mate, has praised Vladimir Putin’s leadership in Russia and claims that the EU is undemocratic. He blames Brussels for the crisis in Syria and the Ukraine.

“As an operator, but not as a human being,” he was quoted as saying on the Guardian, “I would say Putin [is the leader I most admire].”

An editorial by Oulu-based Kaleva asks what PS chairman Timo Soini thinks about Farage and that if it wants to be a viable political force in Finland, the PS leader must distance his party and denounce what Ukip’s statements of support for Putin.

Näyttökuva 2014-4-3 kello 11.41.30

Read full story (in Finnish) here.

Such a suggestion by one of Finland’s largest dailies shows more naivety than real understanding of what the PS is and why it is a threat and menace to our democracy and peace.

The PS bases its recent success at the polls on isolationist-nationalism, anti-EU, anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam rhetoric.

Asking such a party to denounce the Ukip, which has become the third-largest political force in the country according to recent polls, would be synonymous to committing political hara-kiri.

Waiting for the PS to “change” into something credible is nothing more than wishful thinking based on self-deceit. It’s this kind of thinking that is already costing our country dearly.

The new look of anti-immigration parties: Over-simplify complex social issues like cultural diversity and racism

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Observing for a number of years the language and behavior of how anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam parties operate in Europe, it’s clear that the codewords used by such parties has changed in countries like Finland. Eyeing power, the compromise that parties like the Perussuomaliset (PS) have made recently is to look more mainstream by toning down their hateful populist rhetoric.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that they have changed their views on cultural diversity and migrants, which they loathe and consider a threat to “their culture and identity,” but instead offer simplistic solutions to complex issues.

Thus it is in the simplistic solutions to matters like cultural diversity, racism, Roma panhandlers, youth unemployment, poverty and crime in general where the prejudice and racism of politician are exposed. This doesn’t only include the PS of Finland, but members of all political parties.

Over-simplistic solutions to social issues has always been a dead giveaway of those that house intolerant views. We should be worried especially today because those that house such views are appearing more mainstream.

Disagree? How many politicians from your country speak in favor of the Romany minority? Cultural diversity? Civil rights for everyone irrespective of your background?

What politicians aren’t defending is what is leading us on a slippery intolerant slope.

PS MP Maria Tolppanen, like so many of her anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam party, have become master trolls of simplistic solutions to complex social problems.

In the blog entry below, Tolppanen asks if forcing Romany panhandlers from registering with the police if a new law is passed by parliament, will turn these people into migrants and thereby be eligible to social welfare. 

Näyttökuva 2014-3-31 kello 7.54.06

Read full blog entry here.

Other examples of simplistic solutions to our ever-growing cultural diversity were offered in 2011 by another PS MP, Teuvo Hakkarainen. He said that homosexuals, lesbians and Somalis should be relocated to the Åland Islands.

Another extreme example of a politician crossing the line and burning their fingers by simplifying a solution to cultural diversity is Geert Wilders of Holland, who told a crowd of supporters that he’d ensure that there would be less Moroccans in the country.

There are many examples I could cite about how anti-immigration parties like the PS over-simplify complex social matters. Why is this wrong? Because when we simplify a social issue we take our focus away from the real issues. Instead, we feed our prejudices, which in turn permits the plant of racism to bloom its poisonous fruits.

When we simplify a social issue we not only reveal our intellectual laziness and lack of resolve to challenge our own prejudices, we end up giving racism the benefit of doubt.

Geert Wilders crosses line, highlights European anti-immigration politicians’ master plan

Posted on by Migrant Tales

We’ve seen a lot of xenophobia and anti-immigration rhetoric thrown at us in the past by politicians like Geert Wilders, who likes to test the waters of hate to see if he can take another step towards his grand plan, which is to make Holland white again.

Wilders’ plan against cultural and ethnic diversity is a recurring message we read over again from anti-immigration politicians. In plain English it means that we must do everything possible to stop the growth of cultural and ethnic diversity.

An interesting question we could ask is what does “white” mean? Sensible people understand that Europe has always been ethically and culturally diverse so what does “white” mean in the anti-immigration context? Coming from the mouths of politicians like Wilders, it’s a declaration of war against migrants and minorities.

The “everything possible” to keep our society white poses a scary question. How far will politicians like Wilders and others go to make their society white? If Wilders’ party or that of the Perussuomalaiset of Finland get enough support, what will they mutate to?

Many far-right anti-immigration politicians, however, won’t reveal their master plan for fear of losing and outraging voters.

That is exactly what Wilders did this week when he crossed the line and ensured a group of supporters that there would be fewer Moroccans in Holland, reports The Guardian.

Näyttökuva 2014-3-22 kello 8.53.51

Read full story here.

Wilders’ comment not only sheds light on such a politician’s Islamophobia, it is the penultimate step on a slippery slope.

Wilders isn’t the only anti-immigration politicians who plays with fire. Marine Le Pen, Pia Kjærsgaard, Timo Soini, Nigel Farage and many others play the same dangerous game.

Racism and intolerance know no master. It might serve you and you may keep it on a short leash. But the truth is that it can bite back and hard as we saw on 22/7 in Norway, the former Yugoslavia of the 1990s and in the extermination camps of Nazi Germany.

The racism and intolerance we are seeing today across Europe didn’t come recently but has always been with us. It has taken many forms and has its roots in European colonialism and imperialism from 1492.

Keeping a society white is not only a pipe dream but a racist ideal based on hocus-pocus myths.

The answer against such intolerance in acceptance, respect and equal opportunities for everyone irrespective of their background.

It’s all about respect and inclusion – not exclusion or spreading ethnic hatred.

 

 

 

 

 

The PS ratchet up their anti-immigration rhetoric as Euro MP elections near

Posted on by Migrant Tales

It’s clear that as the Euro MP elections near on May 25, anti-immigration parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS) will ratchet up their hate rhetoric. Attempting to give a more middle-of-the-road appearance to their familiar hostility towards migrants, it’s clear that PS MP’s like Juho Eerola, who is running for Euro MP, is saying the same thing as he always has.

Eerola suggested on daily Kouvolan Sanomat that migrants in Finland live off welfare and are a strain on the system.

He said: “In the place of quantity we should speak of quality. Why would any state want to bring migrants that are a drain on society? Even [basketball team] Kouvot doesn’t ask players to join the team so they can sit on the bench.”

But isn’t that the issue, MP Eerola? Finland accepts refugees from war-torn countries in Africa, Middle East and elsewhere but the grand majority of migrants who live here speak Finnish, work and pay taxes. Why do you want to pick on a minority and victimize them?

Your party’s constant negative stance towards migrants and cultural diversity is scaring away those qualified and skilled migrants you claim you would want to see more of in Finland. Why would I want to bring my family to live in a country where people like you and the PS are hostile towards migrants?

Näyttökuva 2014-3-17 kello 11.33.06

Read full story here. 

When Eerola speaks of migrants in quality as opposed to quantity terms, he’s really speaking about an ideal called super migrants. It’s a fairy tale story where Prince Charming kisses Sleeping Beauty and both live happily ever after.

The bottom line is the following. With poker faces, politicians like Eerola, will state that they are not against immigration (sic!) but against immigration they consider harmful to Finland. Who are these “harmful immigrants?”

They are their usual scapegoats: Africans, Muslims and especially anyone who undermines the white ethnic landscape of Finland.

Migrant Tales published recently on Savon Sanomat, Kainuun Sanomat, Karjalainen, Etelä-Suomen Sanomat and Fennia a column about these so-called super migrants.

 

 

 

PS MP Hakkarainen sends SMS pictures of his phallus

Posted on by Migrant Tales

It’s quite remarkable that Perussuomalaiset (PS) MP Teuvo Hakkarainen, who has made racist remarks in the past like homosexuals, lesbians and Somalis should be relocated to the Åland Islands, still enjoys the support of his party after he sent on his work phone an SMS message with pictures of his phallus. 

Näyttökuva 2014-3-14 kello 10.54.14

Read full story here.

The incident is just another example of how the PS resembles more a tangled circus comprising of tragic-comic solo actors whose best quality is jumping from one scandal to the next. This is the party that aims to lead Finland into a new era, which is anti-EU, anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam.

Hakkarainen has apologized publicly for the incident but the story has now taken a new twist. The PS MP claims that he did not take the picture himself, reports tabloid Ilta-Sanomat.

According to PS MP Mika Niikko, the picture of Hakkarainen’s phallus was taken by a friend without his knowledge. Hakkarainen was drunk too drunk at the time to notice, according to Niikko.

Two years ago, the PS sent Hakkarainen to be treated for his alcohol problem. Apparently treatment has had little impact on his drinking.

What can the PS mutate to if the political conditions are right?

Posted on by Migrant Tales

In order to understand what a party like the Perussuomalaiset (PS) are, look at how it rose to become Finland’s third-largest party in parliament in less than ten years.

The growth of the anti-EU, anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam PS has been impressive to say the least, rising from 5 MPs in the 2007 parliamentary elections to 39 MPs in 2011.

While many played down the party’s historic victory of 2011, the Euro MP elections in May and next year’s parliamentary elections in April will determine whether the PS will remain as one of the country’s biggest parties or return back to the minor political leagues where it came from.

The presidential and municipal elections of 2012 were a clear disappointment for the PS, mustering only 9.4% and 12.3% of the votes, respectively, which were a far cry from its historic victory of 2011, when it gained 19.05%.

One of the reasons that could shed light on the stellar growth of the PS is not only the euro crisis and the financial bailouts of countries like Greece and Portugal, but the growth of intolerance, nationalism and xenophobia throughout Europe. PS chairman Timo Soini, believes, however, that the main factor for the party’s historic victory two years ago was anti-EU sentiment.

Another matter that has made the PS popular with the voters is that it is all things to everyone, if that everyone is a voter who is a middle-aged white Finnish male. In many respects the rhetoric of the party is similar to the Tea Party of the United States, which tries to lure voters by using immigrants as scapegoats and promoting free-market capitalism.

The PS usually speaks in code to its voters and that is why it can have members who house racist views and claim that it doesn’t tolerate racism. Some, like PS MP Jussi Halla-aho, have been sentenced for ethnic agitation and can still enjoy the support of the party’s leadership.

One of the matters that should worry sensible Finns is not what the PS is, but what it can become.

A good sister party of the PS is the UK Independence Party (Ukip). Both parties are very similar ideologically but with some differences. The Ukip, for example, wants the United Kingdom to leave the EU while the jury is still out on the PS’ stance on the matter.

Both the PS and Ukip are anti-immigration and anti-Islam parties that cannot be still labelled as “far right” like the Danish People’s Party or Lega Nord of Italy.

Certainly in the ideological bubble of populist right-wing rhetoric, everything is possible, even changing and rewriting history to suit one’s intolerant views.

If you want to read a comprehensive review of the Ukip’s far-right ties in Europe, read what Rowena Mason wrote on the Purple Rain blog of the HOPE not hate website.

Näyttökuva 2014-3-13 kello 15.58.47

Read full column here.

The Ukip,like the PS, belongs to the Europe for Freedom and Democracy (EFD) group of the European parliament.

While the PS belongs the EFD group and has one Euro MP, Sampo Terho,

Arun Kundnani, author of The Muslims are Coming!, said recently that it was worrying that a party like the Ukip has links to people and parties that are Islamophobic and in the far right.

Why should we believe Soini and the PS when they claim that “they aren’t racist” or have far-right ties?

Jay Smooth’s recent video, How to tell someone they sound racist, offers us an answer. The PS, politicians from different parties, and the Finnish media, hide or wrongly focus their attention on the “they-are-racist” as opposed to the “that-sounded-racist” conversation.

There may be a number of reasons why their focus is away from the ball. Uncovering why would reveal a lot how intolerance has gained an ever-bigger foothold in countries like Finland.

“What they did conversation focuses on the person’s words and actions and why what they did and what they said was unacceptable,” said Smooth, adding that the problem with the they-are-racist conversation is that it will take your focus away from the issue.

The person that made the racist comment wins, you lose.

 

How to tell someone they sound racist

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Here’s a very good video clip with Jay Smooth that I found thanks to Racism Review that will help you challenge a person who makes a racist remark. The first and foremost thing you must do is stick to the that-sounded-racist conversation as opposed to they-are-racist conversation, according to Smooth.

Kuvankaappaus 2014-3-12 kello 0.49.43

Read original blog entry here. The video clip has gotten close to a million views.

“What they did conversation focuses on the person’s words and actions and why what they did and what they said was unacceptable,” he explained.

The problem with the they-are-racist conversation is that it will take your focus away from the issue.

“If somebody picks my pocket I’m not going to be chasing him down to find out if he feels like a thief deep down inside his heart,” said Smooth. “I’m going to be chasing him down to get my wallet. I don’t care what he is but I need to hold him accountable for what he did.”

We’ve heard it so many times before after a racist outburst the I’m-not-racist defense line.

In a nutshell we don’t care what you are but care about what you did and said.

The advice in the video clip offers the Finnish media, politicians and the public a way to challenge people who make racist comments.

Instead of calling Perussuomalaiset MP Jussi Halla-aho, Olli Immonen, Juho Eerola and James Hirvisaari of  Muutos 2011 racists, hold them instead accountable for what they have written and said.

Two of the four above-mentioned MPs, apart from Eerola and Immonen, have received sentences for ethnic agitation. Doing a google search on any of the four MPs will give you enough evidence to understand what they said sounded or was racist.

When the media doesn’t get it and doesn’t understand the difference, racists are usually given a platform to spread their prejudices. They give racists inflated respectability and importance.

)

Read Racism Review blog entry here.

 

Sarcastic and humorous politicians should seek new careers in comedy

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Imagine the following predicament: Politicians who should know better capitalizing on a country’s racist streak in order to further their careers and narcissism. Adding salt to social injury, these politicians claim to be “patriotic” but in fact are far from it. Is promoting nationalism, hatred, racism – no matter how passionately or subtly – so-called “patriotic” behavior?

Kuvankaappaus 2013-10-3 kello 0.36.10

PS MP James Hirvisaari defended this person’s Nazi salute in parliament as “humor.” When politicians spread the message of hate and racism in Finland, they do so by claiming to be humorous, sarcastic or being critical. For obvious reasons it’s never considered racist or unbecoming behavior by an elected public servant.

Fueling intolerance is reckless and opportunistic behavior, especially if it will land you lots of votes and a political career.

On top of being reckless and opportunistic, these types of politicians are weaklings because they claim to dress their racism with humor and sarcasm.

Take for example the anti-EU, anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam Perussuomalaiset (PS) party of Finland. Is it acceptable for an elected public official from the PS or any other party to spread racism and victimize other groups to further his or her career?

Is it acceptable that the PS’ leader, Timo Soini, broke his promise to voters by not sacking party members who were sentenced for ethnic agitation?

Here’s the bottom line: The sarcasm, humor and even the so-called critical thinking against immigrants and minorities of these opportunistic politicians isn’t funny at all, especially to those they label and victimize.

If these politicians are so much into humor and sarcasm, they should make a career change and become comedians.

If they are public servants, however, they should learn to behave accordingly, respect values like social equality for all, and never forget they represent a wide constituency of society.