Tag: Racism

Kempele, Finland, suspected rape case: Is the social media lynching party over?

Posted on by Migrant Tales

If you read stories Tuesday about a fourteen-year-old girl who was raped in Kempele by two  suspects aged 15 and 17 years, who are Afghani asylum seekers, today’s news offers a totally different twist, reports YLE News.

According to a police statement, one of the suspects has been released from police custody because he didn’t have anything to do with the alleged crime.

The 17-year-old being held by the police denies that he had raped the victim.

The police stated that comments made especially in social media “have been brisk and mostly inappropriate” and that “people cannot write whatever they wish in social media.”

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Read full story here.

Continue reading “Kempele, Finland, suspected rape case: Is the social media lynching party over?”

UPDATE: An asylum reception center map we should all be ashamed of in Finland

Posted on by Migrant Tales

As long as we have politicians and other community leaders who support hate speech overtly or with their silence, and as long as parties like the Perussuomalaiset (PS)* base their support on racism against people who are different from them, Finland will not be a safe country for everyone. 

The map below is shameful considering that we’re one of the most affluent and apparently safest countries in the world.

Politicians, the media and the public are ignorant of the sheer hardships and destruction that the war, which we’ve been accomplices in, have brought on the people of the Middle East and Africa. We’re only outsiders looking in and what our eyes reveal is enough for some of us to turn our backs.

But what about if I told you about the horrors of war and gave you a ringside view of the raw violence and utter despair of people who are commonly blown to shreds by bombs and hate? Would you want to know? Would what you’d see change your life forever?

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Municipalities where asylum reception centers have been attacked and where there have been problems. Source: Yle.

There are probably more attacks against asylum reception centers in Finland than the YLE map above suggests. Migrant Tales wrote in early November a suspected arson attack against the Pitäjänmäki reception center that was not reported by the media.

Continue reading “UPDATE: An asylum reception center map we should all be ashamed of in Finland”

Susheela Daniel: On being a multicultural Finn

Posted on by Migrant Tales

I got to know Susheela Daniel through many of her insightful Facebook postings. She was one of the brave women who protested in front of parliament against the election of Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party MP Maria Lohela as speaker of parliament. One of her latest Facebook posts was on “integrated migrants” raised some good questions about Uncle Toms in the migrant and minority community.

An Uncle Tom, or Tuomo-setä or setä Tuomo in Finnish, is a term used in the United States for people who betray their race in order to get privileges. Urban Dictionary defines it in the following way: “A black man who will do anything to stay in good standing with ‘the white man’ including betray his own people.”

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Susheela Daniel. Photo by Fateme Azizi.

In a multiethnic country like the United States, the Uncle Tom label plays an important role. One of the roles it plays is a bit similar to a deserter in times of war.

Taking a look at the violence and hostility that some minorities are facing in the United States, it’s clear that the Uncle Tom label aims to protect a community that is already embattled by racism, social exclusion and scarce opportunities.

How would one define an Uncle Tom in Finland?

Daniel admits that she’s never heard of the term Tuomo-setä in Finnish never mind in English but agrees that the phenomenon exists in Finland.

Continue reading “Susheela Daniel: On being a multicultural Finn”

UPDATE (November 20): Migrant Tales’ 2015 Hall of Poor and Sloppy Journalism

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Migrant Tales’ 2015 Hall of Poor and Sloppy Journalism will be updated separately. To see other examples of opinionated journalism in Finland about cultural diversity, please go to this link.

November 20

Aukeavatko suvakin silmät? – (Tamperelainen)

What’s wrong with this community paper editorial? Community papers like Helsingin Uutiset and Vantaa Sanomat are just as bad as other media in spreading bigotry and urban tales about immigrants. They do this for two reasons: they don’t know better and because it’s a good way of boosting their advertising revenues. The editorial by the latest Tamperelainen spewed some pretty harsh rhetoric about asylum seekers. It claimed, among other things, that some asylum seekers are swindlers and that Europe should take a tougher stance against such people. The editorial by the paper’s editor, Karri Kannala, headlined “When will Kumbaya multiculturalists open their eyes,” claims the following: “Speaking of migration is racism, promoting Finnish identity is fascism. You can only talk about multiculturalism if you are a kumbaya multiculturalist, other opinions aren’t welcome.” Bigotry, racism and prejudice still attract big crowds in Finland. They are used by community papers as well and are an example of the worse type of journalism that you can find.

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Read full story in Finnish here.

Defining white Finnish privilege #25: This land is my land, this land isn’t your land

Posted on by Migrant Tales

It’s disturbing to watch in Finland journalists who maintain and promote urban tales and racism. One of these is Tuomas Enbuske who invited Lenita Airisto to his television talk show to speak about Muslims. When Aristo opens her mouth and gives her opinions about cultural diversity, it’s evident that she still lives is a provincial and stuffy time warp of pre-1990s Finland.

One of the many things she said that exposed her bigotry in a recent talk show with Enbuske was that Muslim women should show more flexible in Finland and take off their veils if they live here.

Airisto, who shamelessly patronizes the Muslim host, Maryam Askar, continuously pats her on the shoulder as if she had such a right.

The patting on the shoulder is a good example of how Airisto sees minorities like Askar as if they were children.

But then she states something that exposes her white privilege to a tee:

“You have come to my country, Finland is my country, and has taken you in with open arms…”

This affirmation, which is highly offensive because Airisto still believes that Finland and the Finns are only white.

What Airisto is doing is denying Askar the right to be different, which is the basis of racism in Finland. Racists and racism is nothing more in Finland than people who have serious issues with people who are different from them.

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Host Tuomas Enbuske is no rocket scientist when it comes to debating matters like immigration and Muslims. He shows more ignorance and conservative opinionated views than sound judgement. In one of his talk shows he advertised “why Somalis rape?” His show got a warning  as a result from The Council for Mass Media for making such a racist statement.

Continue reading “Defining white Finnish privilege #25: This land is my land, this land isn’t your land”

How Timo Soini and the PS hope that the terrorist attacks of Paris will give them a picker-upper in the polls

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Below are two quotes. One is by the present foreign minister, Timo Soini, and the other below is by former Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja. Soini is a member of a party that made its mark in politics thanks to its anti-immigration and isolationist rhetoric. 

Since Soini and his party, the Perussuomalaiset (PS)*, base their rhetoric on false promises that have been broken after becoming a member of government, their popularity has taken a nosedive in the polls.

What they say and promise have nothing to do with present-day Finland because they are based on lies and if they had free reign they’d legally turn migrants and minorities to third-class citizens.

Everything they propose to demote migrants and minorities in Finland is unconstitutional.

But the show must go on before the PS ship sinks for good as the Titanic did in 1912.

Let’s check out two very different quotes by Soini and Tuomioja about the carnage that took place in Paris Friday.

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Soini was quoted above as saying on Uusi Suomi the following about the Paris attacks: “We have to take what happened [in Paris] seriously. The simple message shouldn’t leave any doubt that democracy will be defended. We will neither give these forces the upper hand nor bow to them but we’ll attack and challenge them.”

Continue reading “How Timo Soini and the PS hope that the terrorist attacks of Paris will give them a picker-upper in the polls”

Finnish fitness center advertises migrants needn’t apply as members

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Believe it or not in Finland there are fitness centers that advertise to their Finnish customers that foreigners won’t be allowed to use their facilities, especially those that live in an asylum reception center nearby.

Kuntokeskus Valolinna is a fitness center in the town of Heinola, located about 140km north of Helsinki, which advertised on its website and in a newspaper the following:

Kuntosali Valolinna will continue to serve only Finns in the future. Due to outside requests, migrants staying in Heinola will not be allowed to become members of our fitness center because our membership is full.

Say what?! You won’t accept foreigners because your membership is full?

An asylum reception center is being opened near Kuntokeskus Valolinna and this appears to be the reason why the fitness centers wants to assure its customers that these people fleeing war will be kept out of the fitness center.

Non-Discrimiantion Ombudswoman Kirsi Pimiä was quoted as saying in YLE that the announcement by the fitness club is discriminatory.

Continue reading “Finnish fitness center advertises migrants needn’t apply as members”

Attempted arson attack against Helsinki’s Pitäjämäki asylum reception center

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Migrant Tales understands that Helsinki’s Pitäjämäki reception center was the target of an arson attack on Friday or Saturday. A Molotov cocktail was hurled at the reception center but didn’t light up properly. 

A handgun and tommy gun was found in the possession of a man sitting in his car near the Pitäjänmäki reception center.

The man in the car wasn’t apparently planning to attack the reception center and wasn’t connected with the arson attack, according to the source.

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On Friday the police apprehended a man in car with a handgun and tommy gun near the Pitäjänmäki reception center.

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While this attempted arson attack was not reported by the media the question is how many of these types of unreported attacks have their been in Finland?

Two arson attacks have already been reported by the media: in Lammi (6.10) and Ylivieska (31.10).

Migrant Tales Literary: Would you buy a used car from PS’ Timo Soini?

Posted on by Migrant Tales

Timo Soini is chairman of the nationalist populist Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party. After the most recent opinion polls showed that the political future of the PS is bleak to say the least, what will Soini do after his party returns to the minor political leagues? Will he start to sell used cars? 

Would he sell used Halla-ahos or, maybe, Immonens, Eerolas, Elos, Huhtasaaris and Slunga-Poutsalos at rock-bottom prices?

Would you buy such a used car from him and would you trust his promises?

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Why not buy an Immonen? The engineering is as simple as the foul and poisonous arguments it exhales from its behind. So simple, in fact, that the biggest threat to this car and its driver is adding a square root to its 1 + 1 = 2 anti-immigration arguments. Buy it to impress racist simpletons. Source: www.zwischengas.com/de/blog/2012

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Here’s a spanking-new Eerola! Impress your friends with this vehicle that comes with a year supply of barf bags. Is it a rocket or a car? Who knows? You’ll respond that even if you are a practical nurse that has worked 12 years at a refugee center you still consider yourself an authority on immigration (sic!). Look at the headlights and rocket “fascist-style Mussolini” look. It’s backlights are intended to be more subdued in order to neutralize the racist demeanor that flashes whenever you signal to switch lanes. Source: www.dominnie.blogspot.com  

Continue reading “Migrant Tales Literary: Would you buy a used car from PS’ Timo Soini?”

YLE poll: Support for PS of Finland takes another dip to 9.8%

Posted on by Migrant Tales

A poll commissioned by the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE) revealed more pain for the nationalist populist Perussuomalaiset (PS)* party, which saw its support plummet below 10% to 9.8%. The party that gained the most in the poll were the Social Democrats, which saw their support rise by 2.4 percentage points to 20.7%. 

Trying to become a “mainstream” party in government has been like digesting poison for the PS, which has based its support on nationalism and anti-immigration rhetoric.

For Finland’s ever-growing culturally diverse society the poll is the best news yet in a long time.

It’s naive to believe that the PS could ever abandon its racism and nationalism since that would mean committing political hara-kiri. Being a member of government has apparently a swifter hara-kiri for the party.

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Read full story here.

While some have waited for the populist party to face the same fate as its predecessor the Rural Party in the 1970s, when the party imploded due to internal bickering, it is the voters that are giving the thumbs down today to the PS.

One diplomatic source told Migrant Tales recently that the PS appears like the sinking Titanic. The orchestra is playing and that distracts people from their doom.

I have written before that the even if the PS may implode or return back to the minor leagues, it’s what is coming after them that could be scarier.

Support for the PS will be tested in April 2017, when Finland will hold municipal elections.

* The Finnish name of the Finns Party is the Perussuomalaiset (PS). The English-language names adopted by the PS, like True Finns or Finns Party, promote in our opinion nativist nationalism and xenophobia. We therefore prefer to use the Finnish name of the party on our postings.