Politicians like Prime Minister Sanna Marin have offered long-overdue leadership when challenging racism in Finnish politics by stating what many know: The Perussuomalaiset (PS)* is a racist party.
“Looking at the speeches of individual [PS] MPs, these speeches have been racist and genuinely hostile to certain minorities,” said Marin in a debate with Petteri Orpo, the chairperson of the National Coalition Party (Kokoomus). “There is no denying this; it is a fact. I don’t understand why we politicians should smile and pretend that these speeches are not real.”
