Antifascist Turku
Hello!
After the recent racist violence in the streets of Turku, Finland, we decided to act against it.
This year Turku has seen an increase in racist activities, maybe seen last time in Finland in Joensuu in the mid/late 90’s. A few examples are firebombs thrown into immigrant-owned pizzerias, racist posters and stickers around the city and lately violent groups of nazis picking fights and beating people presumably with immigrant background in the streets during the night. There has been nazi organized counter demonstrations when a Turku based anti racist group held an anti racist demonstration. Also within party politics there has been a racist and nationalist upswing, the new party Muutos2011 (Change2011) held a tiny demonstration the 6th of December supposedly against racist violence when it in fact was for Finnish national pride. Other parties that outspokenly have racist views are Perussuomalaiset (the true Finns) and the new Vapauspuolue (the Freedom party). Vapauspuolue has two representatives in the Turku city council: infamous for his racist opinions in just about any context Olavi Mäenpää and Maarit Rostedt. Perussuomalaiset has one representative; Maria Lohela.
It is not only racism that is flourishing, but homophobia and sexism are clearly linked to this violence. The Helsinki Pride -parade was attacked with gas in the summer of 2010, injuring 30 participants and spectators, the youngest only a few months old. The office of Seta, the organization for lesbian, gay, trans, bisexual people (LGTB) in Finland had its windows smashed and spray painted with swastikas. Earlier stickers in Turku declared that Finnish women, supposedly all from one race group, should be proud of their race and don’t be race-mixing sluts.
These are a few examples of the increase in hateful activities in Turku. There has been organizing against it in discussions, demonstrations, street art and documentary nights. This fight will continue in its many different forms, until the streets are safe and the society is free from this kind of hate and violence. This blog is an example of this fight, and will post antifascist actions taken in the city of Turku. You are welcome to contact us at antifascistturku@hushmail.com.
Here are some posters, free for use.
antifascistturku 
Tervehdys.
Onko teillä tekijänoikeuden haltijan lupa käyttää muumihahmoja mainonnassanne?
Ei ole, mutta Toven hengessä käytämme niitä. Tove oli antifasisti, lesbo ja suomenruotsalainen. Hän teki taidetta näistä lähtökohdista. Esimerkkejä:
“From 1929 until 1953 Jansson drew humorous illustrations and political cartoons for the left-leaning anti-Fascist Finnish-Swedish magazine Garm, and it was there that what was to become Jansson’s most famous creation, Moomintroll, a hippopotamus-like character with a dreamy disposition, made his first appearance. ” http://www.biblio.com/9781590173299
ja
tiivistetty myös Antti Alasen blogissa: “Tove Jansson, a multi-talented author and painter, was an anti-Fascist cartoonist in the 1930s. She was a Renoirian artist with a spirit of love and tolerance; a Lesbian in an age when it was against the law in Finland. She belonged to Finland’s Swedish-speaking community well-known for their good family and friendship networks and high regard for culture and tolerance. ” http://anttialanenfilmdiary.blogspot.com/2010/08/muumi-ja-punainen-pyrstotahti.html
ja artikkeli homoeroottisuudesta Toven kuvissa ja kirjoissa löytyy tästä (ruotsiksi): http://www.qx.se/1235/att-vara-valsignad-av-karlek