“Perhaps, the True Finns, as a political phenomenon… the reason why it’s hard to discuss it, is because the party’s name is so literal. It is just that, true Finnishness, which touches everyone of us. It’s not just some group that can be easily stigmatized, so I totally understand why politically this is an extremely difficult situation. Because in the established politics, True Finns have now produced a new kind of definition of Finnishness… the side product is the fear of what will go on, if our own nationhood is excessively criticized.”
“This is one of the blind spots in the current Finnish discourse. It’s considered a triumph for democracy, a fine political gesture, to not talk about the built-in possibility of undemocratic forces coming into power within democracy. …The thing that is most worrying though - and really something worth dancing, singing or acting about - is the silencethat is settling on certain topics. And that is just extremely dangerous.”
“There is a particular new Fennoman movement going on, where we are being fed with a populist narrative of Finnishness, and a history that has never existed. It’s rather confusing, as it seems people are really buying it without any criticality. We should really think long and hard what it means to be Finnish in today’s globalized world.”
Excerpts from Tiina Rosenberg’s interview in the YLE’s Kultakuume program, 23 June 2015.
