8-year-old Somali girl pushed off commuter train
An incident in which an 8-year-old Somali girl was pushed off a commuter train at Espoo Station on Tuesday is drawing attention to the effects of overt racism on immigrant children. “I was just going into the train and the man came out and pushed me. He was a scary man”, says Amal Farah Abdi as she relates the incident to Helsingin Sanomat.
Amal’s father says that she had been to his workplace after school to get money for a transit pass. When she got on the train at about 2:00 PM a man on the train pushed her back onto the platform.
“Get out of my way, you little monkey”, the man had said. A woman on the platform helped her up, and back on the crowded train.
“She said don’t worry”, Amal recalls.
Later in the afternoon, father and daughter filed a criminal complaint for defamation and assault. The Espoo police launched an investigation into the case on 13.5.2009.
According to a doctoral thesis by Anna Rastas, it is very common for immigrant children in Finland to experience acts of racism. She interviewed dozens of children and young people who had either been adopted into Finland, or who had a parent with a foreign background. Each one of them had experienced racism.
“These situations do not come every day, but they do happen. Rastas says that experiences can include overt violence, discrimination, sexual harassment, or abusive language.
In one incident, 10-year-old Subeir Mohamed was nearly run over at a pedestrian crossing in Leppävaara in Espoo a few years ago. The driver rolled down the window, shouting racist epithets. Asked if he has ever been verbally abused for the colour of his skin, Mohamed replied: “Sometimes at school, but most of my friends are of the ordinary colour. It helps.”
Children react in different ways to experiences of racism. Anna Rastas says that they often do not tell their parents or their teachers. “Children do not necessarily trust that others will understand their experiences.”
Subeir Mohamed told about the car incident as soon as he got home. His father told him to reveal everything. “I don’t think that anyone would want to keep it a secret if someone drives straight at you.”
Anna Rastas believes that many Finns do not know how they should react to racism that targets children. It is often not understood or noticed, and there is also a tendency to downplay the significance of children’s experiences. It is not always easy for immigrant parents to defend their children. “Because of their position in society, they are not necessarily always listened to.”
Amal’s father Farah Abdullaahi and her mother Adan Halawi were shocked by the incident on the train, and they filed a criminal complaint. “We have to think if we should move, so that the children’s trip to school might be easier. This is the first case of racism in our family”, Farah Abdullaahi says. He is still shocked by the incident, even though his daughter is safely at home. Also concerned about his children is Subeir’s father Abdirahman Mohamed Gure.
“It is hard to compare two cultures, but no matter how mentally ill someone is, you can’t treat children like that.”
Source:
Helsingin Sanomat - International Edition: Incident at train station draws attention to racist acts aimed at children (14.5.2009) http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Incident+at+train+station+draws+attention+to+racist+acts+aimed+at+children/1135245950103
