I almost fell off my seat when I watched A-studio Thursday. Perussuomalaiset (PS)* MP Hanna Mäntylä justified the ongoing victimization and labeling of Finland’s small migrant community. She said this was fine because some white Finns are poor.
“We have in effect people who live and are on the verge of suffering from hunger because they don’t have enough money to pay for food on a daily basis,” said Mäntylä. “Yes, these kinds of stories come in loud and clear on the campaign trail like why we have this kind of immigration policy in Finland.”
One of the problems with this kind of claim by Mäntylä is that she includes all migrants and paints them with a single brush. Her point is a clear example of scapegoating but neither the host nor the guests brought this up.
Is it the fault of those refugees fleeing war and hunger that some white Finns are, as Mäntylä points out, on the verge of suffering from hunger?
Of course not but she blames all migrants for this.
If we are fair, Mäntylä’s statement reveals the hostility of the PS towards cultural diversity and how they want to keep migrants as second- or third-class citizens.
Mäntylä’s view of immigration – she doesn’t distinguish between migrants and refugees never mind humanitarian immigration – is one matter but when those present like Ilkka Kanerva of the National Coalition Party, Green League MP Ville Niinistö and Antti Kaikkonen of the Center Party don’t challenge such populist statements that too speaks volumes about why migrants are the favorite punching bag of politicians.
Since the majority of migrants are employed in this country and pay taxes, how many of these migrants that Mäntylä cites are we speaking of? How many thousands compared with the hundreds of thousands of Finns who get social welfare? In English we call this a storm in a tea cup. Another good term is scapegoating.
PS MP Hanna Mäntylä states that it’s fine to loathe all migrants and demand a change in immigration policy since there are Finns who are on the verge of suffering from hunger in this country. Her statement is a good example of scapegoating.
Continue reading “Thursday’s A-studio: How the Finnish media and politicians paint immigrants with a single brush”
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