MPs throughout Europe are opportunistically using the xenophobia card to boost their chances of getting reelected. This is the case of Suna Kymäläinen, a Social Democrat (SDP), who is eyeing the April 2015 parliamentary elections in Finland. Read full story (in Finnish) here. Kymäläinen is a sad example of how politicians who don’t belong to anti-immigration…
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Aleksanterinliitto: Hyvinvointivaltio ei ole kaikille?
Migrant Talesin kommentti: Viime aikoina keskustelu Suomen yhä kasvavasta vihamielisestä ilmapiiristä maahanmuuttajia ja vähemmistöjä kohtaan on kiihtynyt. Ukrainan sodan ja Perussuomalaisten puolueen politiikan, joka pyrkii sulkemaan Suomen ja Venäjän rajan turvapaikanhakijoilta, myötä yksi ryhmä, joka on joutunut yhä enemmän poliitikkojen kielteisen huomion kohteeksi, on Suomen venäläinen yhteisö. Aleksanterin liiton Alexey Bulavtsev on koonnut artikkelin poliitikoista,…
Anti-refugee sentiment in Finland and politicians who capitalize on fear and racism
A new survey by PEW Research Center shows that there is wide support in several EU countries for taking in refugees. The report shows that Spain is the most welcoming while Poland and Hungary are the least responsive.
Finnish whiteness, Russophobia, anti-immigration and our ever-growing cultural diversity
One matter that became clear in Sunday’s parliamentary elections is how polarized Finland is. On the one hand anti-immigration and Finnish whiteness was heard loud and clear, while two new non-white Finns were elected to parliament: Social Democrat Nasima Razmyar and Ozan Yanar of the Greens. If there is good news to emerge from these elections, it’s Razmyar…
Finnish gay rights hall of fame, shame and extra shame
As the winding history of Finland’s first same-sex marriage law is being written, there’s already a hall of fame and shame from February 2013. As everyone knows, the citizens’ initiative for same-sex marriage was defeated Tuesday in the legal affairs committee of parliament by a vote of 10-6. Even if those 10 who voted against…
Passage of draft bill to prohibit real estate purchases by non-EU citizens would expose Finland’s xenophobia of Russians
Politicians that fuel nationalism and intolerance forget to tell you one important fact: They carry a high price tag in the form of lower economic growth and less jobs. If passed, a draft bill spearheaded by Social Democrat (SDP) MP Suna Kymäläinen would not only hit businesses in eastern Finland that depend on Russian tourists,…