Racism Archives - Page 127 of 208

Reija Härkönen: Jussi Halla-aho’s actions in parliament

Posted on November 1, 2013 by Migrant Tales

Reija Härkönen

When Jussi Halla-aho was getting prepared for the parliamentary elections, on the last day before the election day on April 16, 2011, he once again urged the anti-immigrant voters to act, thanked his own people (meaning the anti-immigrant circle) for their good work and the True Finns (Perussuomalaiset) of Helsinki and the neighborhood of Kontula for the arrangements. He said:

“I want to remind you once again that our importance in the future depends solely on the number of votes we get. Therefore, it is important that all of my supporters go to the polls, even if they have the assurance that I’ll get elected anyway.

I urge the rest of the country to vote for other True Finns, so that we can get as large group as possible [in parliament].”

Halla-aho also endorsed True Finn candidates whom his followers could vote for in the rest of Finland. Not that the True Finns party needed such a success, but the anti- immigrant so-called nuivat candidates needed it in order to get behind them a large parliamentary group.

In the same context, Halla-aho published for the last time his pre-election speech. It contains some doomsday text, but when read by a clearly articulate, shy-looking young man, the effect is somewhat tragicomic. This probably explains why the site with the text and video was taken down from the Internet. Fortunately everything can be found on the Internet, even Halla-aho’s campaign agenda:

http://web.archive.org/web/20110519104548/http://halla-aho.com/index.php/etusivu/loppurutistus-osa-11-16-4-2011/

Halla-aho headlined his speech “Change is possible,” and wrote:

“We are facing a historic upheaval. On 6.4.2011 will open a window of opportunity. This window will close on the actual election day 17.4. The decisions you make in this timeframe will define Finland’s direction for years to come.

There are two reasons why these are the most important elections of Finland’s post-war period. First, they take a stand on important questions. If there is no radical change in immigration policy now, the social and economic consequences are going to be massive and largely irreversible.

This is not just trivial intimidation. In these elections we shall make up our minds whether we shall take the course of Sweden, France, Britain and Germany. We need not do so.”

The speech also mentioned briefly the EU, reducing aid to developing countries and supporting recreational shooters, but its main emphasis was “immigration-criticism” and his long and self-sacrificing work, the loss of men, and fear-mongering that Finland is doomed to ruin unless “change” happens now:

“In no previous elections have the voters had the same opportunity to express themselves as now. After years of criticism of immigration [policy], our project culminates in these elections, and it is the culmination of the True Finns immigration-critical candidates.

This is a fact, which everybody knows deep down inside. The entire media and all the other political parties are unanimously attacking the True Finns group for the simple reason that a change in immigration policy hinges on whether we win or lose.

Our success in the election is what is being monitored. Our electoral victory is what is feared. If we win this election, the change can not be stopped. If we lose this election, our criticism of immigration [policy]shall be deemed as rejected and the multicultural steamroller will move on.”

On his familiar Hommaforum forum, Halla-aho summed up the last-minute atmosphere by quoting Tolkien:

“A great doom awaits you, either to rise above the height of all your fathers since the days of Elendil, or to fall into darkness with all that is left of your least.”

The election victory, which was christened jytky, became a reality. On Hommaforum, Halla-aho seemed to be a bit interested in a ministerial post, even though it was a little scary at the same time:

“It is clear that the mere visibility and a staggering number of votes forced to give me a reasonably visible and symbolically important task, but my honest opinion is that staying in the background actually offers a member of parliament like me the best possible potential. A prominent role should be given to those with the best technical know-how, and who do raise too many passions in people.”

The True Finns decided to fight it out in the opposition, but the administration committee chairmanship tasted sweet to Halla-aho. He signaled from the plenary session of April 25, 2011 the following:

“These are great days, and the proportions of the anti-immigrant revolution will be fully understood only in a longer perspective. Conversely, the tolerant people [anti-racists] will live in a nightmare, which they would not have been able to imagine a moment ago.”

In his blog on the same day, Halla-aho starts preparing his excited supporters for the precepts of his parliamentary work and that results would not happen immediately:

“The writing to create political influence on the Internet, by its own conditions, often feels like a carnival. It aims to ‘entertain’ the audience and attract attention. In political decision-making, especially at the highest levels of Government and in Parliament, this may not be the most efficient way of doing things. Influencing requires the maintenance of relations, particularly to official servants and other politicians, and decision-making takes place largely behind the scenes, at coffee tables and in corridors. Political decision-making is not entertaining and not transparent, and in this respect we need to adjust to the rules. In politics you need to advance in small steps, not thunderously.”

“You have given us your trust in the election. It will be measured in the next election. Until then, I ask you to trust that we will do our best, even if we are less visible in the public eye, and regardless of what the media are reporting about us. Evaluate the achievements in the course of four years, not in real time.”

Such a less public and behind-the-scenes strategy did not please everyone, and Halla-aho was forced to defend his strategy:

” When I say to play by the rules of the house, I just mean the method, not giving up our principles. Most of you probably knew that.”

“Compromises are inevitable in politics. Let us imagine a situation in which we promised a stop on family reunifications, if we agree, during the election period, not to change the status of [mandatory] Swedish at schools.”

“What should I do? What would be the about-turns, and a betrayal to voters?”

“Which in general is the most important thing: the preservation of the halo and the integrity of the anti-immigrant representatives or the fact that the anti-immigrant agenda will be promoted?”

Family reunification is in Halla-aho’s opinion the worst problem of our immigration policy. Reuniting families means, in his mind, that women and children will arrive, who in turn will give rise to more men, women and children. This would, after all, not be too bad, of course, since Halla-aho himself has a family of four children. This would, however, be in conflict with the aims of the far-right extreme nationalist Suomen Sisu association, which is openly against the “unnatural mixing of peoples” and following “the Swedish, French, German and British course”.

After “sending tanks” to the streets of Greece, and after being for a short time expelled from his parliamentary group and losing the administration committee presidency in the summer of 2012, Halla-aho reassured his supporters on Hommaforum:

“The promise of ‘change of tactics’ means that in my debate I will focus to not give the other party ‘easy pickings.'”

Halla-aho has seemingly been focused to believe that the always-sharp Swedish People’s Party MP Jörn Donner has sold himself cheap and believes the True Finns have calmed down as a party. When MP James Hirvisaari was kicked out of the True Finns and formed his own parliamentary group (Muutos 2011) for showing too visibly what the anti-immigration wing of the party really thought, Halla-aho will continue to influence matters behind the scenes. This is what he’s done:

Legal Initiatives

The Act amending the Penal Code , Chapter 17 (the law of breaching the sanctity of religion) 20/09/2013
The Penal Code Chapter 11, § 10 of the Council (the law on ethnic agitation) 09/20/2013
Law of the Firearms Act on 02.07.2013
Law of the Firearms Act on 02.07.2013
Law of the Firearms Act on 02.07.2013
Law of the Firearms Act 6 § on 07/02/2013
Law of the Firearms Act 6 § on 07/02/2013
Law of changing the Aliens Act § 51 and § 149 on 29.10.2012

Budget Initiatives

Refugees and asylum-seekers: of the proposed appropriation reduction of 28.9.2012
The EU Solidarity and Management of Migration Flows program SOLID subject to the proposed reduction of funds of 28.9.2012
The Ombudsman for Minorities and the National Discrimination Tribunal: the proposed reduction of the operating expenditure of 28.9.2012
“European Finland”: the proposed reduction of state aid allocation of 28.9.2012
The retired Presidents: the proposed reduction of the cost appropriation of 8.9.2012

Written Questions

The obligation to criminalize ethnic agitation 10/25/2013
Deportation of persons receiving a negative asylum or a residence permit 10/11/2013
Teacher’s possibilities of intervening disturbances in school 19/04/2013
International criminalization of faith criticism 29.11.2012
Refugee status and subsidiary protection status, the abolition of 22.8.2012

With the help of firearm laws, the anti-immigrant True Finns are working to change the direction of Finland’s preparedness to an external threat. One way to prepare for such a threat is for Finnish homes to be armed and home owners should carry more robust weapons than just pistols and air rifles.

Easier access to weapons and firearms is an important matter in the eyes of Halla-aho’s supporters. As soon as the parliamentary work had started, Halla-aho passed the firearms trainer course and made sure that the media and Hommaforum knew about this.

Halla-aho’s intention, revealed on Hommaforum, is to become an effective politician: “If the opposition wants to really affect things, one must be able to influence the government’s party representatives, and to be able to do it means being nice and sober”

He may already have had a little bit of success in this. Or maybe it’s just the general male mentality: “It’s harmless for boys to play with guns” which made MP Kari Rajamäki to approve of Halla-aho’s initiatives and state: “These are quite reasonable proposals.”

All in all, Halla-aho has acted exactly the way he promised his voters and the True Finns by suppressing refugees, suppressing minorities, and facilitating access to guns. In addition, he seeks as well to change the law on ethnic agitation so that Muslims and immigrants can be insulted publicly with impunity.

Taxpayers are paying Halla-aho to do this type of work as well as paying the salary of other True Finn MPs. These representatives are also – as sad it is to say – the representatives of our people around the world.

Alleged white Finn attacks Helsinki church dressed as a Muslim

Posted on November 1, 2013 by Migrant Tales

What would you say if a white Finn dressed like a Muslim attacked a Lutheran church in Helsinki by breaking its windows, yelling and obstructing window repairmen from repairing the damage he caused? What would you say if this happened on Tuesday night, when YLE aired A2 Islam debate on television?

Would you say it was an isolated case or yet another example of how Islamophobia has raised its ugly head in this country?

What your answer is depends on your personal perspective.

What is my answer? Since Finland is my country and since it is my home, I have an obligation to defend it from threats that weaken and undermine its values. One matter that is threatening and challenging Finland is outright intolerance.

If you deny and believe what happened is an isolated incident, you should then ask what the election of 39 MPs of an anti-EU and anti-immigration party to parliament in 2011 signaled.

Read full story here.

So what happened on Tuesday night?

According to Seurakuntalainen, eyewitnesses who saw what happened called the police and a window repair company. The suspect tried to stop the window repair men from changing the windows. He was reported to have told them that what he did was a message and warning.

A warning against what? That there are Muslims living in this country? That there are Islamophobes in this country that think it is perfectly find to spread hatred and feed our racism?

It will be interesting to see what kind of charges are brought against the suspect and how the authorities weigh this incident.

UPDATE (4.11.13): It appears that the religious affiliation of the man that attacked the Roihuvuoren Church on Tuesday isn’t clear. Migrant Tales is investigating and will publish something on the matter this afternoon.

Are you a perpetrator or victim of white Finnish privilege?

Posted on October 31, 2013 by Migrant Tales

One matter about intolerance is that it is universal. The social ill can manifest itself in different ways by speaking different languages and historical context but don’t be fooled by these deceptions: Intolerance is the same ogre.

White privilege is one of the many faces of racism and means automatic access or exclusion to the opportunities, social, political and economic capital a society offers due to your ethnic background.

Tim Wise, one of the most prominent anti-racist writers and speakers in the United States, defines white privilege as “any advantage, opportunity, benefit, head start, or general protection from negative societal mistreatment, which persons deemed white will typically enjoy, but which others will generally not enjoy.”

A good example of white Finnish privilege exposed in a recent YLE television program by Sam Kingsley, where an undercover group comprising of a Finn, Russian and Somali, attempted to see if they would be treated differently when applying for a job, seeking an apartment, asking complete strangers for help, and getting access to a night club.

If white privilege in the United States has an aim, so does white Finnish privilege.

How did white Finnish privilege ever come to these shores? One of its many roots is the colonial period, when European powers concocted excuses to pillage and exclude other groups in their colonial empires that weren’t white. These pernicious systems, which exist in Europe today, gave the colonial powers a moral pretext to not only commit genocide but ensure that the spoils went to them.

Click here if you want to read more about the roots or our racism in Finland and Europe.

One of the reasons why Are you a target of racism in Finland became such a successful posting in 2007 is because it exposed how racism would work in this society at a time when it was still strongly denied.

An article on BuzzFeed Community highlights, 17 deplorable examples of white privilege, not only sheds light on how it occurs in the United States but gives us the opportunity to create a “white Finnish privilege meter” that will help you know if you are the perpetrator or victim. Take the test blow and answer yes or no.

Because of white privilege, you’ll never have to worry about becoming the victim of law enforcement officers (US). One good example of this is the recent debate about ethnic profiling by the police (in Finland).
Because of white privilege, you’ll never have to inform your children of the harsh realities of systemic racism. True. Since you won’t have to inform your children in Finland about racism, they’ll grow up playing down or denying the existence of racism in Finland. Well, almost…

Read full story here.

3. White privilege means you can be articulate and well spoken without people being “surprised.” This means in a Finnish context that you speak the language like a native but still get asked: ”Where are you from” or “where did you learn to speak our language so well?”

4. Because of white privilege, you’ll never know what it’s like to have the following statistic looming over your head. In the Finnish context it means ethnic profiling and being victimized and labelled a rapist, terrorist and common thief. Ask Finland’s Romany minority if in doubt how this works so efficiently and systematically.

5. White privilege allows you to speak on any particular subject without being the sole representative for your entire race. Here’s a Finnish version of the latter: Mohammed, you’re a refugee. Is there racism in this country?

6. White privilege means no one questions why you got that really great job, it’s assumed you were just highly qualified. In Finland some may comment: You’re an exception or you got where you did because of you’re foreigner and therefore have certain privileges.

7. White privilege means not having to worry about your hair, skin color, or cultural accessories as the reason you didn’t get a job. Does this need any explanation?

8. White privilege means you don’t have to worry about being monitored in a store just because the hue of your skin is a bit darker than most. A common complaint by some people who aren’t white is that it’s played down in Finland. White people tell non-whites that racism is a figment of their imagination.

9. Having white privilege means people will never label you a terrorist. Some Perussuomalaiset MPs commonly victimize and label certain ethnic groups as rapists, criminals, social bums and terrorists.

10. White privilege means not being affected by negative stereotypes that have been perpetuated and ingrained so much into American society that people believe them to be fact. In the past years, how many negative stereotypes have been perpetuated and spread in Finnish society about immigrants, and visible minorities? So many that it helped an anti-EU and anti-immigrant party, the Perussuomalaiset, win 39 seats in parliament from 5 in the previous election.

11. White privilege means you never have to explain why cultural appropriation is a bad thing. This picture below says it all.

Aake Kalliala and Pirkka-Pekka Petelius reinforcing stereotypes and racism of the Roma in Finland.

12. If you benefit from white privilege, you’ll never be told to “get over slavery.” In Finland you’ll never be told to “get over racism.”

13. Benefitting from white privilege means you can walk the Earth unaware of your color. In Finland it means being in a colorblind bubble that enable you to deny that ethnic background does play a role in discrimination.

If you answered YES to any two, the chances are that you are a perpetrator or victim of white Finnish privilege in this country. If you answered YES to three or more, you are definitely a perpetrator or victim of white Finnish privilege.

About A2’s debate on Islam tonight…

Posted on October 29, 2013 by Migrant Tales

The A2 islam-ilta television debate Tuesday will reveal once again white Finnish ethnocentrism, how poorly we know our laws and, what’s important, how poorly we accept people who are different from us. Is the Finnish media giving once again racists inflated respectability and importance?

Will the A2 debate improve or undermine the situation of Muslims in Finland?

How many immigrants, or Finnish Muslims, won’t get hired tomorrow because of the program? How many will be attacked physically and psychologically? How many viewers’ Islamophobia and bravado will the program reinforce? How much self-esteem will it chip away from a child or adolescent who goes to school tomorrow and gets bullied because of his or her ethnic or religious background?

Why should anyone justify his or her religion and right to live in Finland? Why should we give a forum to those who demand such justifications? It’s absurd.

Would we want to have a debate on television why women should go back to the kitchen and serve men?

What can you expect from YLE if the nature of the beast is what it is? How does Interior Minister Päivi Räsänen give a sense of security to minorities in Finland when she openly victimizes and labels non-Christians, plays down ethnic profiling by the police, considers homosexuality to be an illness and drags her feet on family reunification?

Sometimes you wonder about Räsänen’s and that of other Finns’ statements. But mark my words, it’s the face of intolerance staring right back at us loud and clear.

Our problem is acknowledge it as such.

Red herrings, code words that help sanitize and make more acceptable our intolerance

Posted on October 26, 2013 by Migrant Tales

Even if I have written for years about Finland’s anti-immigration groups like the Perussuomalaiset (PS), you have to learn to detect the red herrings in order to understand their real views on the topic. What you may uncover behind these red herrings is far scarier than ever imagined.

A red herring is “something intended to divert attention from the real problem or matter at hand; a misleading clue.”

It’s not easy to figure out what politicians think on a certain issues, especially if it has to do with a hot topic like immigration.

Why is it so difficult to get a plain honest answer? Because those that spread intolerance know that it’s morally wrong and therefore sanitize their views with red herrings and code words.

Any sensible person understands – or should know – that intolerance is morally objectionable and wrong. If it weren’t, why do so many anti-immigration groups use red herrings and code words to hide their real views?

If you asked PS MPs like Jussi Halla-aho, or why not James Hirvisaari of Muutos 2011 as well, what their anti-immigration views are, they’d probably reply that they aren’t against immigration. What they are really saying is that they don’t object to foreigners as long as they’re white Europeans, Christians, conservative and heterosexuals.

The lie exposed above is that if their criteria were used to accept immigrants in Finland, nobody – or very few – would move to this country. Thus their real aim, which is to keep Finland immigrant population to a minimum, would be accomplished.

It would be wrong to claim that the PS and Muutos 2011 are the only anti-immigration parties in Finland. There are others. Check out Wille Rydman’s and Susanna Koski’s vies of the Youth League of the National Coalition Party.

Another good example is Social Democratic Party head Jutta Urpilainen’s infamous maassa maan tavalla statement in 2011, which means in Rome do as the Romans do. What Urpilainen suggested is that this is my country, not yours. In order for it to be yours you must be like me.

Irrespective if a politicians or supporter belongs to the Left Alliance, neo-Nazi Kansallinen Vastarinta or anything in between these two extremes, they are all united by one factor that is rarely if ever mentioned by the Finnish media: What are their real views of people who are different from them? Are they for or against greater cultural diversity?

Some common red herrings used constantly by anti-immigration and anti-cultural diversity politicians include:

This group is so different from us that they’ll never adapt to our society. (What they are really saying is that since they are so maladapted in their opinion they must not be allowed to live or move here).
Immigrants don’t want to learn Finnish and therefore don’t want to adapt. (The truth is that it’s very difficult to meet Finns and becoming their friends. If you disagree, ask another Finn).
I’m not against immigration. (Right. All I want are white brain surgeons to move to this country. We don’t need any immigrants).
If we bring the right type of immigrants, we won’t be required to change. (Immigrants should be judged by the skills they bring to the country not by their ethnic and religious backgrounds).
I’m not allowed to express my opinions freely about Muslims and immigrants. (Google the word “Eurabia” or “Immigrant threat” and see if this is true).
There’s no racism in Finland. (Right, a white person speaking for a black person is like a man speaking for women and claiming that there is gender equality).

So what’s the solution?

Recognize the red herrings and code words so you can tackle the real issues facing our ever-growing culturally diverse society.

Do it relentlessly.

The Roma blonde girl in Greece and the shadow of intolerance

Posted on October 25, 2013 by Migrant Tales

When I first read about Maria, the blonde girl that was discovered in Greece belonging to an unrelated Roma couple, a number of disturbing questions arose. One of these was an obvious one: Why so much interest by the media?

It would take a while for the red herring to be exposed. It eventually became clear for all of us to see: We don’t really care about the plight, poverty and the least about Roma children except if they’re white.

A comprehensive article on Maria and anti-Roma sentiment in Europe. Read full story here.

If anything, the incident is not only a wake-up call to our intolerance, but another reminder how little we have done to come to terms with our racism and history.

Racism is a social ill and it functions in a pathological manner. It has a Dracula effect that makes us sicker as it is passed from one generation to the next with the help of denial.

If we were serious about challenging this foe, we would have beaten it, or at least put it on the defensive, a long time ago.

The question we should be asking, then, is why we haven’t yet struck a stake through the heart of such a social ill?

And why couldn’t we? We have made tremendous scientific breakthroughs in many fields but in one, like racism, where we are still anchored in a time warp immobile.

The case of the girl in Greece not only exposes deep anti-Roma issue in Europe, but everything that is wrong with us. In the little girl you will find the shadow of European colonialism and megalomanic greed that gave birth to the slave trade in the sixteenth century all the way to the rise of fascism and Stalin’s purges in the 1930s in which millions perished.

It’s nothing more than the same ogre mocking at us.

Dana: Why doesn’t President Sauli Niinistö care about immigrants? What’s his stance on racism?

Posted on October 23, 2013 by Migrant Tales

Dana

Finland is a small country but a very proud one about its political and legal system. Some Finns believe they are, however, so different from other people on this planet and they can’t explain why.

For example…in Finland the law functions like magic; they believe that the law is so comprehensive that no-one in this country can behave in a racist manner and make the same mistake over and over again.

You can ask questions about the political and legal system but no-one will answer your questions…the Finnish system is supposed to respect human rights and give you a lot of freedom but still there’s a reject stamp on each question you ask, especially if it’s about family reunification.

This blog entry is about Sauli Niinistö, the President of Finalnd.

I have never seen him once organize a seminar or meeting with our immigrant community. Have you?

Why hasn’t he??? Is there a Finn that can answer this question? What about a foreigner?

What does Niinistö think about immigrants, refugees, or about me as a foreigner who lives here?

Who knows? Come on! Hands up! Speak up! Why doesn’t anyone ask this question to Niinistö: “Why don’t you speak up and defend our ever-growing culturally diverse society? Why haven’t you shown any interest in us, immigrants and refugees alike?

IS IT FEAR MR PRESIDENT???

Or is it because we are still such a small community that you still haven’t noticed that we’re here?

Small in size maybe but in which respect? In values, in will?

Do you have any news or information about the president’s new, even old thoughts about foreigners?

Can Niinistö understand my suffering – or aren’t I worthy of his attention?

He’s been president of Finland for some time. During his mandate he has hosted Independence Day celebrations at the Presidential Palace. He’s been seen dancing among supermen and superwomen on that day. Everyone has their eyes on him. The media watches him like white on rice but they don’t speak about anything else except how he’s dressed.

I believe the media in this country is materialistic because it is more interested in expensive clothes than in the suffering of others never mind growing social problems like poverty.

Niinistö went on official trips abroad, here and there; he spoke about different things but he NEVER EVER noticed our community, us foreigners, his neighbors who live in same country.

Tell me WHY??????

The rich people of the UAE are just like him. Since the Finnish governments needs money, they only respect rich foreigners from countries like the UAE.

No-one can call me a second-class citizen of this country. I am first-class and will always be no matter what anyone does.

In a nutshell, this is the course of humanity in Finland: Some treat me well while others look down on me.

Those that want to relegate me to the lower human leagues make my blood boil!

Well-groomed politicians and making racism in Finland “normal”

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Migrant Tales

In general terms, there are two types of politicians in Finland that spread intolerance: those that let it all hang out and another type that speaks to you politely and is well-groomed. In the latter group, you’ll find PS MPs like Jussi Halla-aho, Juho Eerola, Teuvo Hakkarainen, Juho Eerola, even Timo Soini; James Hirvisaari is a crude example of the former group.

These types of politicians, who inhabit as well the National Coalition Party, Center Party, Christian Democrats, Social Democrats, Greens, Swedish People’s Party and the Left Alliance, believe it’s perfectly fine to attack immigrants and refugees in this country.

If you took away the rhetoric and double-speak of their so-called impeccable well-groomed arguments, you’d end up with two embarrassing revelations: intolerance and anti-cultural diversity.

These types of politicians hate immigrants, but especially Africans and Muslims.

How they manifest their hatred and racism is the trick. They have to figure out how to sanitize it. In other words, how to make their racism look “normal.” Wearing suits and flashy ties help give their message more credibility.

Eerola, the PS MP who admitted to be attracted to fascism, is a case in point. Before Eerola’s election, he sometimes looked like a poorly dressed hippie with a beard but then cleaned up his act.

One of PS MP Eerola’s many images.

Image plays a crucial role for any politicians, never mind his or her political message. If you look like a slob, your message will lose strength.

Another important matter you must learn as well is the language of institutional racism and political correctness. It’s like learning manners at the table. You can be a slob in real life, but at a public table you have to know the fine art of etiquette.

Immonen, in a recent column on Uusi Suomi, an online newspaper that has become a platform for the PS, wrote that he’s against Africans and Muslims applying for asylum in this country.

Note PS MP Olli Immonen’s tie and nicely folded handkerchief.

Using PS leader Soini’s twisted logic, it’s fine for Immonen to attack immigrants as long as he says publicly that he’s against hate speech and not a racist. The person defending, or spreading hate speech, is naturally wearing a suit and a tie.

Sometimes matters take a turn for the worse irrespective of our well-groomed public image. Soini, a devout catholic, went through a scapegoating ritual this month when he sacrificed Hirvisaari and fed him to the political dogs.

The PS leader is now keen to tell us that the party doesn’t have any longer any issues with racism.

Like a person learning etiquette at the table, the PS is learning how to appear “normal” but without changing. It’s still the same party with the same message of hatred, same loathing for immigrants, especially Africans and Muslims.

When I was Colombia bureau chief of a U.S. news agency, I was responsible for the people I hired. My boss in New York used my hiring abilities to assess my performance as a manager. If I hired the wrong person, I’d be the first to hear about it from my boss.

Soini is directly responsible for the racism in the party for taking on board the Hirvisaaris, Halla-ahos and Hakkarainens. Even if he claims to object to racism, he’s just as responsible.

Alex Andreou gives a great quote on a Guardian opinion piece about how the far-right. Apart from changing form constantly, “the far-right throbs and expands, blooms, then folds into itself and subdivides like an amorphous but sentient blob from a 1950s B movie.”

While part of the PS’ convoluted ideology and make up has far-right elements, it is clearly an anti-EU, anti-immigration and especially anti-Islam party. A B horror movie can make us laugh or put us to sleep but it can never match the treachery and devastation that a political movement like the PS can inflict on others, like immigrants.

Magneettimedia editor and owner fined 45,000 euros by court for anti-Semitic writings

Posted on October 21, 2013 by Migrant Tales

Magneettimedia editor and owner Juha Kärkkäinen has been fined by a Finnish court 45,000 euros for publishing anti-Semitic writings of Ted Pike, David Duke and others as well as cartoons that bear a striking resemblance to the former Nazi tabloid, Der Strümer (1923-45), reports Lahti-based Etelä-Suomen Sanomat.

Read full story here.

The court ruled that the writings published fall in the category of hate speech and propaganda against Jews.

Kärkkänen, however, denied the charges. He said the writings weren’t libelous or defamatory.

Numerous anti-Semitic articles have been published in previous issues of Magneettimedia. These include:

The Jews Who Control the Media
Who Owns the Media in 2012?
A Great Video Shows What a Cheat Albert Einstein Really Was!
Zionist Terrorism in Norway
CNN, Goldman Sachs and Zionist Control
How to Break Down and Dominate the Zionists

Meanwhile, former Perussuomalaiset (PS) MP, James Hirvisaari, accused on a blog entry the Finnish government of committing genocide against its people.

“Multiculturalism is one of the death weapons [to commit genocide],” he wrote. “With crude lies like “internationalization,” “aiding,” and – which is ridiculous – “to save Finnish jobs,” Finns are clearly misled to believe that the only option is the death of Finland.”

This kind of writing is being spread by the Muutos 2011 MP.

While Hirvisaari is one of a few MPs with far-right anti-immigration views, how much hostility spills to the street from his racist diatribe? How many Finns, with low self-esteem and multiculturally challenged like him, are “inspired” by his message of hate?

There is no reason why anyone living in this country should take sitting down Hirvisaari’s and Kärkkäinen’s call to hate minorities.

Our reaction to intolerance should be first and foremost a reaction.

Dana: Ymmärrättekö Finland – wild culture, wild picture and wild future

Posted on October 20, 2013 by Migrant Tales

Dana

How long will I have to endure these racist attacks and hostile looks? And what’s wrong with being a foreigner in Finland anyway?

There are no rainbows here if there’s only one color: white. No matter how much you paint your society white, I’m alive and will always feel victorious before you.

I have never met a Finnish person who can discuss with me what is wrong with this country. If I open my mouth, I’m attacked, even if I talk freely and with an open mind.

In Finland I never seen people with different ideas. NO… I’ve only seen one thing, one idea. Yes, there r different groups, organizations, even in sick parliament there r different political parties, but they are all the same. There’s no difference between them. They think they’re different in their minds but they’re not. They cannot fool a human like me. The only party that doesn’t use a MASK is the PS (Perussuomalaiset) because they are openly racist. That’s the only difference between them and other parties.

In don’t lead a normal life in Finland, but i should defend myself at all times in public, no? Those who attack me are everywhere and ready to abuse u and make u feel u r nothing except a slave.

That’s why u see foreigners in shops owned by foreigners, because even in shops racists can attack u; yes, even when i pay with cash and contribute taxes.

The racists always think they know everything and that u, a foreigner, don’t know anything, They give the image of being wise, but tell me why would a wise person attack you because of ur skin color???

One of the famous words and sentences that they use in Finland is: Ymmärrättekö, do you understand?

They don’t, however, use this word not in a normal way. It’s used a very harsh, insulting, dry and wild way…..OH U R ALL WILD! Wild, cranky, nervous and full anger in your souls.

Yes i understand and i understand more than u, so much more than u but what about you? Can’t you see that I am a human being like you? Can’t you understand this, Finland? Ymmärrättekö?

I understand the racists well. You are a big percentage in Finland and anywhere u can imagine. You fight back by ignoring me; you cannot argue, discuss, you cannot even figure out a simple matter, u cannot talk in peace. I, a foreigner, make you tremble. Ur afraid of me. You yell back repeating rauha, rauha (calm down, calm down) but where’s your rauha??? How and why do you lose ur rauha when you see a foreigner? You cannot see that we foreigners are different, from different places, different cultures, and different families… you always treat us the same way… looks like you have problems in seeing people as individuals.

Finland can never be my home because it isn’t a safe country. Home is a safe place. It’s the most important thing, more important than food for a human.

You awaken the fighting spirit in me, my face turns red and my blood boils.

Ur racist behavior reveals how weak you are.