As Finland races into the depths of the new century and distances itself from the Winter (1939-40) and especially from the Continuation War (1941-44), I’m certain that there will be more proof about our collusion with Nazi Germany. One such story appeared Friday, when YLE in English reported on the Finnish Sports Federation’s (SUL) apology…
Tag: Winter War
Migrant Tales (May 26, 2011): Racist propaganda during Finland’s Winter War (1939-40)
Consequently, racial prejudice and discrimination are nonexistent (in Finland). …
Where are you from?
Even if I have lived most of my adult life in Finland and my mother is Finnish, I’m still asked occasionally where I’m from. In a spirit of mutual respect, I ask the person the same question. Some don’t like it. The innocent question, where are you from, reveals a lot about our prejudices and…
Finland’s biggest threat is itself
As Finland awakens to the reality that it is a culturally diverse society, one of the biggest threats and challenges we face doesn’t come from abroad but from our backyard. When the Civil Rights Movement ended in the United States in 1968, the first matter that we learned we should stop doing is generalizing about blacks…
Finland’s mini Breivik: gunman kills two and wounds seven
What motivates a young man to take the law in his own hands and kill indiscriminately defenseless people? While we still don’t know the motives behind the killings in Hyvinkää, the suspect’s “likes” on Facebook may offer us some clues. Writes YLE in English: ”Police in the town of Hyvinkää, some 50km north of Helsinki, say…
Racist propaganda during Finland’s Winter War (1939-40)
Finland was also denying in the 1960s that racism did not exist. Racism has, however, been part of our culture for a very long time: Kongo shoe polish, Neekeripusu (n-word kiss) chocolate, the Fazer licorice Gollywog are some examples of how this social ill had implanted itself in the national culture.
Banishing the racial myths of Finland
One of the challenges that cultural diversity will bring on Finland is challenge its myths and views of itself especially on the ethnic front.
Mannerheim and Finnish provincialism
I heard yesterday an interesting talk on Marshall Carl Mannerheim (1867-1951) just a few days before the outbreak of the Winter War (1939-1940) exactly 70 years ago. The talk centered on different aspects of the Civil War of 1918 and how Mannerheim saw the world.