A group of 60 experts and others interested in the field of sports and social issues agreed with Minister of Sports Carl Haglund, who stated that sports is an underused tool for social participation and action.
Tag: sports
Why do migrants have too little say over their matters in Finland?
The Finnish ministry of education allocated 1.3 million euros in 2015 compared with 1.2 million euros the previous year to support migrants in sports, according to YLE. Despite such sums of money migrants and their children still face obstacles like discrimination and racism in sports. Discrimination today in Finnish sports appears as exclusion, name-calling, insults, even violence…
Tapanila sexual assault in Finland sends a disturbing signal about our society
Something terrible happened on Monday night after 9pm at the Tapanila train station of northern Helsinki. A group of 15-18-year-olds were reportedly harassing a young woman on a train, who was later sexually assaulted by the same suspects outside the station, according to Helsingin Sanomat. No respectable news organization or police force with integrity should…
Apparently few migrants and minorities attended the National Sports Forum
Some claim that one of the problems that migrants and minorities face in Finland is that they are underrepresented in different associations. Last Sunday, the National Sports Forum held a meeting in Helsinki to talk about the future of sports in Finland. Gathering from the picture below, it’s clear that few migrants and minorities were…
Racism Review: Façade of tolerance – Donald Sterling, the NBA, and systemic racism
John D. Foster Over the weekend, much media buzz centered on the release by TMZ of a recorded conversation between Donald Sterling and V. Stiviano, his girlfriend. In the conversation, Sterling expresses his objection to her posting pictures on Instagram with Black people, including one with Magic Johnson. Response to the story has varied. Other…
Sport is one of your best passports to acceptance in a new country
Since sports can be your passport to acceptance in a new country, its role should never be underetimated never mind undermined. It’s clear that we need to do more work in Finland to promote sports in order to include more immigrants and their children in this activity. In the United States I played basketball, track…
How minority athletes rise to victory – Interview with Star Athletics Winner Nooralotta Neziri
Çelen Oben and Sheila Riikonen In Finland where finance and politics are no longer barriers to achieve star status in sports, what challenges do minorities face? Do female athletes, persons with disabilities, or those coming from immigrant backgrounds have equal opportunities in Finnish society? You can visit Nooralotta Neziri official website here. Nooralotta Neziri just won…
Racism Review: Gabrielle Douglas – Accenting Black Women’s Talent, Agency, Femininity
By Joe Anna Holmes has an excellent post on the great achievement of Gabrielle Douglas, the first African American to win the women’s all-around gymnastics gold medal in the Olympics. (And to win the two particular gold medals she got in this one Olympics.) What an achievement for any 16-year-old, but especially for one who has faced the…