Browsing by Subject "rasismi"

The purpose of the study was to examine the communication of Finnish anti-immigration politicians, especially their representations of immigrants. Previous studies have shown that the self-named "immigration critics" have played an important part in making stigmatizing and derogatory talk about immigrants seem more acceptable. The theoretical framework of this study was built on Smith's (2007a) model of stigma communication. Stigmatizing messages consist of marks to recognize and categorize people, labels to distinguish people as a separate social entity, cues of responsibility to imply blame, and implications of peril linking people to physical or social dangers. The aim of the study was to find out if these contents can be found in anti-immigration discourse. The data were drawn from six blogs written by True Finn candidates who got elected in 2011 Parliamentary election. The data also contains the Sour Election Manifesto (Nuiva vaalimanifesti) signed by them. The main method in analyzing the data was theory-driven qualitative content analysis. Methods of rhetorical discourse analysis were used as a complementary analysis in reviewing the strategies of this communication. The results show that the strongest mark was affixed to the groups that have the lowest positions in the prevailing ethnic hierarchy. Muslims and people of African origin were marked most strongly, but marking was for most part indirect. The marked were labeled as culturally backward and strongly separated from "us". Responsibility was linked with the immigration itself: it was implied that the labeled people had only left their country in search of an easy life. Prejudice was claimed to be caused by the immigrants' own actions. Presenting the immigrants as both physical and moral threat to the Finnish community was the most dominant stigma message and it was used to justify stigmatization. Immigrants were presented as a homogeneous mass (part of label), but there were also claims that they should be seen and judged only as individuals. This color-blindness makes it possible for the stigmatizers to never actually face their victims, because they are not seen as members of a stigmatized group on an interpersonal level. It is also very hard for the stigmatized to change the stigma in these circumstances. The model of stigma communication proved out to be an effective tool for qualitative interpretation in this context. Further study should investigate the receiving end of these stigma messages, in this case it could mean studying the comments or the readers of political anti-immigration blogs.

The aim of this thesis was to explore teachers' perceptions and experiences of normative whiteness and white power. This is important because whiteness is built into the education system, and it is a way of maintaining racist perceptions and values. It also allows for the maintenance of ableist values and perceptions, as whiteness has historically been associated with notions of intelligence, efficiency, and ability, for example, thus justifying racism through categories associated with disability. The thesis therefore drew on an intersectional framework identifying "race" and disability to identify the ways in which ideologies of whiteness are manifested in the education system, producing multiple, overlapping forms of oppression. The examination of the issue from the perspective of teachers is essential, as teachers are in a position of significant power in producing and maintaining categories of "normal" and "non-normal". The study was conducted as a systematic literature review. Through narrative synthesis, 7 themes describing teachers' perceptions and experiences emerged from the data. Themes were divided into two groups (perceptions and experiences of white teachers and perceptions and experiences of PoC teachers) to find the widest possible range of findings about the ways in which ideologies of whiteness manifest in teachers' perceptions and experiences. The division was made in line with the anti-racist agenda of the study and the Disability Critical Race Theory framework. The findings of the study confirmed previous research findings on epistemologies of white innocence, which manifested in white teachers as fear and avoidance of talking about "race", downplaying racism, exploiting ignorance, defensiveness, focusing on whiteness, and emphasizing their own white goodness, among others. PoC teachers' perceptions and experiences were related to multiple experiences of racism. PoC teachers also described several ways in which normative whiteness and white power were implemented in the education system, manifested in eurocentric and whiteness-centered examination structures and materials. The groups' findings complemented each other in that while white teachers described their ignorance of racism, PoC teachers described their experiences of white teachers not taking responsibility or recognizing oppression in the education system. The findings also mirrored each other in that as white teachers used trendy words ("woke") to elevate their own social status, PoC teachers expressed concern that challenging racism would be a trend for the privileged, rather than a sustainable, anti-racist activity. The findings of this study reflect the multiple ways in which normative whiteness and white power are manifested in the education system. To be truly equal, we need to look critically at the power structures in the education system and challenge what are perceived as "normal" perceptions and values.

The purpose of this Master's Thesis is to research the understanding of the white normativity of the Finnish education system and the racism associated within it, from the perspective of the Finns’ who identify as mixed-race. The thesis also considers the views of the mixed-race Finns on how the white normative school system has impacted their cultural identity. The thesis makes use of Stuart Hall’s theory of cultural identity, and Robert Miles’ theory of racialization. Previous studies have shown that there is white normative practice and racism present in the Finnish education system. Nonetheless, I noticed that previous studies had not been done from the point of view of the Finns identifying as mixed-race. Therefore, I wanted to explore the pos-sibilities that examining white normativity in the Finnish education system from this perspective could offer. I wrote this thesis as an insider since I identify as a mixed-race Finn. Furthermore, there were six others who took part in my study. Two semi-structured focus group interviews were con-ducted twice during the 2019-2020 academic year. In these interviews, we discussed the white normativity of the Finnish educational system and our own cultural identity. I applied both nar-rative and thematic methodology in my analysis. This meant understanding the phenomena with the help of narratives but organizing the results thematically. When it comes to my results, I discovered that there is the attribute of white normativity con-joined with the Finnish cultural identity. Thereby, the white normativity and the whiteness as a precondition for identifying as Finnish defined the cultural identity and its perception of those Finns identifying themselves as mixed-race. The white normativity of the Finnish educational system and the racism associated with it contributed to the development of internalized racism experienced by the Finnish mixed-race students. In this thesis, I have recognized and named these white normative structures in the Finnish educational system with the focus group inter-viewees. The results can be used for further research in the field of racism.

The topic of my thesis is the social construction of reality in Finnish children's literature. In my dissertation, I am looking for an answer to what kind of reality is constructed in Finnish children's literature. Literature is an important part of education. As society changes, it is necessary to examine what kind of reality is built in children's literature, because children's books are the part of children's reality. Children's books are a mirror where children reflect themselves and the world around them. The values, norms and attitudes that appear in literature are transmitted to the child and how the child builds a picture of reality through books. The Finnish education system has been criticized for the favoring of middle-class and white children. There is also too little diversity in Finnish education materials. The first step to appreciate and understand diversity is to become aware of the phenomena associated with it. For this reason, in my thesis I have examined the values, norms and attitudes of the most popular and newest children's books.  The theoretical framework of my dissertation is divided into two parts. I examine the research material from the perspective of social constructionism and intersectionality. In the theoretical framework, I focus on examining the language used in the material as a factor that constructs and shapes reality. From the point of view of an intersectional approach, I look at different social groups and their attention in children's books. My material consists of eight Finnish children's books, which have been selected as material according to two different principles. Four of the children's books have been selected from among the most quoted children's books of 2021. The other four books have been selected as part of the material based on their year of publication, as the thesis had an imperative to pay attention to the newest children's books as well. There are three research questions. In the first research question, I am looking for an answer to what kind of reality is constructed in the books from the point of values, norms and attitudes. In the second question, I study whether there are factors that promotes equality. In the third research question, I am searching for what kind of racism appears in the books. I divided the material into two main entities, through which reality was constructed. They are called discourses of values, norms and attitudes that differ from traditional ones and traditional values, norms and attitudes. These two entities contain a total of 15 discourses, which turned out to be relevant for the topic of my research.  The results of my thesis show that although there are more factors supporting equality in children's literature than before, the presence of diversity is low. Instead of diversity, the whiteness norm prevailed in the majority of the books. For this reason, based on the results, children belonging to the PoC (People of Color) group or other minorities do not have enough identification in my thesis literature. With the help of observed discourses, educators and teachers can in the future choose anti-racist children's books as books to read, which promote equality and prevent racism. As a whole, the thesis provides important information about the values, norms and attitudes prevailing in Finnish children's literature. Through them, educators and teachers can utilize better the power of social change hidden in children's books.