Tag: Racism

Asylum seeker Ibrahim has applied to hundreds of jobs in Finland without luck

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Racism squanders talent, growth, and opportunities.

Migrant Tales

Prejudice is an emotional commitment to ignorance.

Dr. Nathan Rutstein 

Most of our perceptions of visible migrants and minorities are erroneous and an outright lie. Remember when Perussuomalaiset* party secretary, Riikka Slunga-Poutsalo, labeled all refugees in 2015, including those from countries like Syria, as economic migrants and welfare shoppers?

This populist and hateful statement by Slunga-Poutsalo was supported by Foreign Minister Timo Soini and Prime Minister Juha Sipilä’s government. Remember the prime minister? He’s the one who offered his home to asylum seekers but then broke his promise like so many others during his mandate.

Since they are “welfare shoppers” and “economic migrants” we give into lies that in turn help justify our ignorance and prejudice. It is the fuel and justification for tightening immigration policy and socially excluding such people.

A good video message by the Finnish Refugee Advice Center.

Such lies about asylum seekers and migrants spread by politicians and the media have labeled us as a problem that should be treated with suspicion and makes it ever-difficult to get employed.

Ibrahim [1] is an Iraqi asylum seeker who came to Finland in 2015. He is a computer hardware specialist who regularly applies to 25-35 jobs weekly.

“During my stay in Finland, I have applied to hundreds of jobs,” he admitted. “I’m still unemployed.”

Ibrahim said that the vast majority of job applications he applies to are through Linkedin (70%) followed by different Facebook groups (20%) and the rest in places such as Jobs in Helsinki, fairs and the like (10%).

“Very few companies tell me outright that they cannot hire me because I am an asylum seeker,” he said. “I feel that the main reason why they don’t want to hire me due to fear.”

Ibrahim agrees that those that tell him that they cannot hire him because he is an asylum seeker are guilty of discrimination. Section 6 of the constitution states clearly that everyone irrespective of his or her background is equal before the law.

“What can I do?” he said about discrimination. “Other factors make it hard for me to find a job. Government restrictions and red tape.”

Despite the situation, Ibrahim won’t give up and will continue to search for a job in Finland despite all the obstacles he faces.

* 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.

[1] The name of the asylum seeker was changed in order to protect his identity.

Pakistanis, Muslims, feel insecure in Finland after dreadful attack against a migrant

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The brutal attack against a Pakistani on Friday night (February 23) must be one of the worst-ever against a migrant. It took four hours last week to remove his stitches. As a result of what happened, the Pakistani and Muslim communities of Finland don’t feel safe.  

Even if the police made no mention of it in a statement, Detective Chief Inspector Mikko Minkkinen is quoted as saying in Tuesday’s Helsingin Sanomat that what happened less than a week and a half ago it is not a hate crime.

If this is the case, and considering the gravity of the attack against the victim, the police should tell the Pakistani, Muslim, and migrant community of Finland how they arrived at such a conclusion.

Migrant Tales published Thursday a story on how the police in Ireland use bias indicators to decide if an attack is a hate crime or not.

Why isn’t it a hate crime? Were the attackers intoxicated? You can be drunk and commit a hate crime. It doesn’t preclude it or stops a group of people from stabbing an innocent victim over 20 times and hitting him on the head with an ax and cause double skull fractures.

One of the words repeatedly used by the attackers against the victim was vittu, the Finnish term for the f-word.

If the crime was horrendous, it has shaken the Pakistani and Muslim community of Finland.

The wife of the victim said that she’s afraid to go outdoors after what happened to her husband.

“Before it was nothing out of the ordinary to go outdoors,” she continued. “Now I must be careful.”

 

One of the many wounds that the victim endured from his attackers. Picture published with the permission of the victim. Photo: Enrique Tessieri.

Another Pakistani, who visited the victim in the hospital on Sunday, said that there is concern in the Muslim community for their safety.

“When people heard about this thing [the attack],” he said, “they became afraid and feel insecure when they go out at night.”

The Pakistani said that he would never walk through a forest at night again as in the past.

“I have two options: to walk 3-4 kilometers or take a shortcut through the forest,” he continued. “I would rather walk 3-4 kilometers.”

Another Somali Muslim said that he has always felt insecure in places where there are few migrants.

“In East Helsinki [where I used to live], I don’t feel in danger because there are so many people like myself,” he said, adding that the attack against the Pakistani in Vantaa is confirmation that Finland is a dangerous place for Muslims and migrants.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

QUOTE OF THE DAY: “The mood is so bad, so unhealthy, that there is no way to talk rationally,” according to Emma Bonino

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“Sooner or later, we will recognize that we need them [immigrants],” says former Italian Foreign Minister Emma Bonino. “For the moment the political mood is so bad, so unhealthy, that there is no way to talk rationally.”

Bonino points to a lack of leadership. She states that “escalating incidents of political intolerance on the left and the right, racist attacks that are not adequately challenged, the lack of resilience in institutions, and the mediocrity of leaders.”

Read the full story here.

 

QUOTE OF THE DAY: Populism is like pissing in your pants

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“Populism is like pissing in your pants in freezing temperatures. It may feel good for a moment, but you soon understand it was a dumb idea. You now have two problems instead of one: freezing temperature and your freezing-cold urine.”

 

Hungary’s Viktor Orbán is an example of pissing in one’s pants in freezing temperatures. Read the full story here.

Exposing white Finnish privilege #49: When white privilege backfires

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Prime Minister Juha Sipilä’s hardline asylum and immigration policy reminded me of the 1980s when former Aliens Office director Eila Kännö’s tough line against migrants turned against her. I see the same thing happening today with the government’s asylum and immigration policy.

People react when a system is impractical and unfair. It is precisely what happened in the 1980s and what is happening today when an Iraqi asylum seeker called Ali was killed in Iraq.

Other Iraqis have suffered similar fates as reported in 2016.

How can the Finnish Immigration Service continue to claim that countries like Iraq and Afghanistan are safe when they’re not.

In the 1980s and earlier, migrants, who were called “aliens,” had to get residence and work permit for each job.

We all know that the tightening of present immigration policy has the signature of the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* and Blue Reform parties. The strategy is ineffective because it hinges on myths and prejudices which end up falling flat on their faces.

In order for immigration to work you need effective and fair policies. The ones we have in Finland now are shameful to put it lightly. One of these is the government’s decision to do away with residence permits on humanitarian grounds, which have forced the number of undocumented migrants to soar manyfold as a result.

Not only are there signs that matters are turning against the government’s asylum and immigration policy, but abroad as well. A  French court ruled that it could not send an asylum seeker back to Finland because it returned them to Iraq and put in harm’s way.

Back in the good old racist days of the 1980s, laws such as the Restricting Act of 1939 (law 219/1939), which became redundant in 1992, prohibited foreigners from owning real estate and acquiring a majority stake in Finnish companies—limiting this to 20% normally and 40% under special permission. The Restricting Act stipulated that foreigners could not own shares in sectors like forestry, securities trading, transportation, mining, real estate and shipping. Foreigners weren’t allowed to establish newspapers, never mind organize demonstrations and be politically active.

Were such restrictions effective? What role did they play in keeping Finland a closed country to the outside world? Were they in conflict with our sense of justice and fairness?

White Finnish privilege #49

When a government like Sipilä’s goes too far and treats asylum seekers with disrespect and breaches their human rights, it’s clear that such a policy will eventually backfire in their faces.

Continue reading “Exposing white Finnish privilege #49: When white privilege backfires”

Maria Lohela pats far right on the back because she is an Islamophobic populist

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Outgoing speaker of parliament and Blue Reform (formerly Perussuomalaiset)* MP, Maria Lohela, finds kind words for a far-right Turku municipal council politician called Olavi Mäenpää who died this week.

Olavi Mäenpää. Source: Facebook.
Read the original posting here.

Why would a politician like Lohela mention a politician who spreads racism and hatred of migrants and minorities?

The only answer I can find is that Lohela finds ideological solidarity with people who hate migrants and minorities.

What did she write about the late far-right city of Turku municipal politician?

“Olavi Mäenpää’s unconditional outspokeness was often puzzling, sometimes offensive. His politial message targetted people…In the same time, Mäenpää was for many locals’ and voters’ the only hope who dared to crack open and upset administration structures, old, unreasonable old good-time practices. It’s in this where he has merit. Mäenpää’s energy and insistance on detail were inexhaustible.”

Continue reading “Maria Lohela pats far right on the back because she is an Islamophobic populist”

QUOTE OF THE DAY: Silence is “approval” of racism

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“Silence is the first thing after hate that is dangerous…silence is not the answer, hate is not the answer.”

Holocaust survivor

If what the Holocaust survivor says is true, and there is no reason to believe that it isn’t true, there is widespread approval of racism in our society. I live in Finland, so the silence I hear is a pat on the back, support of racism.

Enrique Tessieri

Watch the full video here.

Racism is an ugly monster that can and must be slayed and banished from our society

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Do you remember five years ago a brave young fourteen-year-old called Rebecka Holm? A letter to the editor about the racist harassment she regularly endured when going to school changed her life

In March 2012, the Red Cross gave her an award for her bravery on the UN Day Against Racism.

I had the honor to interview Holm. She said that silence isn’t the answer when confronting a social ill like racism.

“If somebody speaks bad about you and wants to make you feel inferior because of your background,” she said, “then we need to talk about this serious matter and hide from it.”

Racism is too ugly to hide and happens a lot in Finland.

The bravery that the then young adolescent showed has more worth than many adults and politicians together, who approve racist harassment with their silence or use it as fuel to advance their political careers.

I will try to make contact with her and see what her thoughts are on the topic today.

Finland: Retreating into a shell and fuelling xenophobia and racism

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As Finland retreats deeper into its shell and ethnocentrism, it feeds the beast of xenophobia and racism. Apart from Perussuomalaiset (PS)* MP Laura Huhtasaari, who openly encourages direct violence and hatred against migrants and minorities, there are others that are just as guilty. 

Who are they?

Interior Minister Paula Risikko and former Interior Ministry official Päivi Nerg have warned us over and over how undocumented migrants threaten our security. If Risikko and Nerg told us with gusto about the threats, Prime Minister Juha Sipilä’s government has done little to nothing to challenge such xenophobic statements.

See the full tweet here.

Volker Türk, UNHCR assistant high commissioner for refugees, said last year that labelling refugees as security threats “risks opening the door to xenophobic and racist rhetoric and can even lead to physical attacks directed against refugees.”

Continue reading “Finland: Retreating into a shell and fuelling xenophobia and racism”

Laura Huhtsaari’s “new normal” is a synonym and carte blanche for open violence and hostility against migrants and minorities

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Perussuomalaiset (PS)* presidential contender and MP, Laura Huhtasaari, claimed in her speech Sunday that populism isn’t a passing phase but will become to “new normal.” In Huhtasaari’s and the PS’ violent world that targets migrants and minorities, the MP deceives the crowd by stating this “new normal” is a good matter.

The picture below that the MP with the kindergarten teacher smile should have shown when speaking to her followers of the PS and the “new normal” should show the picture below.

Read the full story here.

While Tony Blair is a disgraced politician who led his country into the Iraqi war in 2003 by lying, his think tank, the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, lacks credibility. How can you trust a former prime minister that misled his country and the Western world with then US President George W. Bush into a disastrous war?

Continue reading “Laura Huhtsaari’s “new normal” is a synonym and carte blanche for open violence and hostility against migrants and minorities”