We have now completed the first edition of the Social Exclusion’s monthly reading list. We have compiled a list of nine books which all include anti-racist rhetorics, discusses justice and equality and overall critical analyses of our society. Many of the books happen to be academic, but some are also written in a more playful way, which makes them also attractive to a younger audience and people who are not familiar with academic writing.

We have strived to make the list as inclusive as possible, but there are still plenty more books we would love to feature. So without further ado, we are announcing that we are continuing with the monthly reading list next September! This list will include even more books that target Racial Justice, Racial Equity and Antiracism in one way or another. Additionally, we would like for our audience to participate in the making of this list, in other words, if you do have a book, which you would like to share and that targets antiracism, feel free to send in your suggestion via email to @ socialex@abo.fi/ aminkeng.atabong@abo.fi. Let’s collectively build this initiative!

Hope the current Monthly Reading List will make for some great reflective readings this summer!

Restful summer to everyone!

The last book on our list will be a book from the recently passed author, feminist and social activist, bell hooks. Her book Sisters of the Yam continues to discuss the black womanhood experience and she explores the emotional health of Black women and how it is constantly being affected by sexism and racism. In her book, bell hooks highlight the link between self-recovery and political resistance and how aspects such as joy and healing are a vital need in the struggle for equality.

bell hooks, was a beloved author, respected feminist and social activist who recently passed away at the age of 69. She was a pathbreaking Black Woman and will be remembered through her writings and doings.

“Colour still matters” is the name of this year’s Social Exclusion annual seminar. The seminar, as always, is part of the course Race, Racism and Anti-Racism and is arranged by the students in the course. This year the seminar will take place on May 24th and be hosted both on campus, in Arken and online, through Zoom. The seminar is free of charge but does require registration. Click here to register.

Follow Social Exclusion’s social media and the seminar’s own social media for more updates about the seminar, like who are the keynote speakers and panellists.

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents

Isabel Wilkerson

The writer, lecturer and the Pulitzer Prize-winning, Isabel Wilkerson, examines in her newest book, Caste: The Origin of our Discontents, the unspoken caste system that has shaped America and shows how our lives today are still defined by a hierarchy of human divisions. Cast means the lack of respect, attention and human kindness to someone based on their standing in the hierarchy, and Isabel truly captivating explores this notion by reflecting and drawing parallels on oppressive structural systems in the States, India and Nazi Germany.

Isabel Wilkerson is an award-winning journalist and writer. She is a native of Washington, D.C., and a daughter of the Great Migration, the mass movement that she would go on to write her first book about.

We have some grand news!

The Social Exclusion master’s program finally has its very own Instagram account! On this account, we will be posting updates on the program, as well as current news and discussions related to social exclusion, anti-racism and inclusion. Following our Instagram, you will also see more faces of the people in the program and be able to interact with contemporary topics regarding social exclusion and inclusion.

If this is something that interests you, follow us on @soexma_abo! The first post is already up!

This week (21.-27.3.2022) the Finnish Red Cross’ annual anti-racism campaign week is taking place. The Antiracism week always takes place around UN International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination which is on March 21st. The main message of the week is said by the Finnish Red Cross to be SEE, SAY, SOLVE. Additionally, the Finnish Red Cross explains the premiss of the week as follows:

During the week, we encourage people to raise discussion on how to create an inclusive atmosphere to all people with the help of good decisions, positive images, stories, friendships and meetings. The campaign will comment on how a dream society is built through practical acts and decisions.

To recognize the week and its importance, we at Social Exclusion want to highlight a new application that would be beneficial to many and which is suitable for the theme of this week. The app in question is Finland without Racism, which is an antiracism app that aims to be a platform for learning about and reporting racism. The app was developed with the help of the head of the Social Exclusion master’s program Aminkeng Atabong Alemanji and the app developer Kayo Games (programming Sila Kayo Quality Assurance Alida Ines Ouandji). The app works with the principle of antiracism training or Antiracism Apptivism, meaning the goal is to disrupt the structural system of racism through knowledge and actions. The app was published in January 2022 for Androids and the IOS version is still in progress.

The app has four parts to it. Starting off with an image of a privilege walk, which was illustrated by Nam-Ke, to emphasize the different starting points people have depending on their origin, race, religion, nationality, and mother tongue. Followed by a learning section, which includes various educational videos about racism and antiracism. These educational videos are for instance, about the racism Roma and Sami people faces. The third part of the app is a short test, which includes eight questions regarding discrimination, racism, and antiracism to reflect upon. The last part of the app is the reporting of racist incidents, which includes a description and links to whom one can report these incidents to. Each part of the app highlights the antiracist purpose of the app, which is learning about structural racism, testing one’s knowledge, and reporting racist incidents and made understandable and accessible for all ages. In the future, the app is planned to be translated into Swedish and Finnish and to be used as a tool in antiracist training in educational spaces.

During this Antiracism week, a lot can be done and thought about, which should be implemented throughout the year. It can be taking part in some of the existing events of the campaign (found on the Finnish Red Cross website), downloading the new app and becoming familiar with it and its function or doing the work oneself and understanding what it means to be antiracist.

Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race

Reni Eddo-Lodge

In Reni Eddo-Lodge first book she further explores her own experience and thoughts about race conversations with white people. The book is a continuation of a blog post of her’s posted in 2014 where she states her frustration talking to white people about race, the inequality of those conversations and how the emotions of white people are taken more seriously than the emotions and killings of Black people and people of color. In Eddo-Lodge’s book Why I’m Not Talking to White People About Race she features seven essays talking about the history of racism, how is it systematically implemented, what white privilege is, feminism and class to mention a few topics. Her bold way of writing calls out injustice many racialized individuals can relate to and situations white people can reflect upon and educate themselves about. Her book has won several awards, like the 2018 British book award and is also a SundayTimes Bestseller. Additionally, her book has earned both longlisted and shortlisted for various other awards.

Reni Eddo-Lodge is an award-winning journalist, author and podcaster. At a young age, she was introduced to feminist activism, which helped her build her political persona, which she still finds useful today. She is born and raised in London, where she still lives.

On Thursday, February 24th, many woke up to disturbing news. To some it was completely unexpected, a few had anticipated it and others heard or saw the treats but only thought of them as empty words. Even if, the invasion of Crimea in 2014 was still recollected by many, a war eight years later was not anything many had foreseen. Veterans who still remember the Second World War was thrown back to the fear and worry the time gave them. Others could finally see a light at the end of the corona tunnel, only to find themselves and the world in a crisis.

Now two weeks later, a lot has happened. Pictures of collapsed buildings after airstrikes, people living in bunkers and seeing the mass on train stations piled together, trying to flee the country to safety has filled most of everyone’s social media feed. We’ve also seen a tremendous amount of support for Ukraine and its people. Many countries have accepted Ukrainian refugees with open arms and supplied them with anything they need and globally different companies and even whole countries have boycotted anything Russian. However, this crisis has also visualized some horrendous aspects and treatments of already excluded individuals and people.

Within the borders of Ukraine, and looking at the people trying to desperately escape, the discrepancy in the way people have been treated has been saddening. Ukraine accepted many international students or exchange students to study, for instance, medicine. However, now in the middle of a war, many of these students have not been aided when trying to evacuate like the rest of the Ukrainian citizens. These international students, mostly from African nations, have been removed from trains, not let onto trains and when women and children have been asked to board, Black women have been turned away at the door and not accepted onto the trains. In addition to the racism seen when people try to evacuate, there have also been cases of transphobia. Ukrainian trans women, who still have their previous gender on their passport have also been denied leaving the country in pursuit of sanctuary in a different country.

Meanwhile, the people within Ukraine has faced racism and discrimination, you can also see the exclusion of people as a result of war globally. For instance, in Finland, Russian citizens have faced an overwhelming amount of harassment and prejudice for the past weeks. Surely this is not a new phenomenon in Finland, where Russians have faced discrimination before, but it has increased and nationalistic Finns see the war as a reason to be mad at Russian citizens, even if they have nothing to do with starting a war. Additionally, the way this war and the Ukrainian refugees has been treated globally, compared to other conflicts and refugees also shows hypocrisy.  Wars that have been going on for years and decades still go by unnoticed in Western media and no sanctions or boycotts are put into place to help these nations in crisis. What these crises have in common is their geographical positioning in the Global South and that it involves non-white, non-western and non-European people. How the world was so quick to condemn Russia was impressive but compared to the crisis in the Middle East and how the West chooses to turn a blind eye is devastating but not surprising. When it comes to Ukrainian refugees, which neighbouring countries should definitely find shelter for,  the way they have been treated and discussed in the media has been completely different compared to other non-white, non-blue eyed and non-European refugees. The Ukrainian refugees are welcomed and taken care of, whereas other refugees are and have been treated like animals and forgotten. All in all, making it clear that some people matter more than others.

Discussing wars and conflicts there are always many perspectives and aspects to consider, in addition to it being difficult and even exhausting to talk about it all. It is not to minimize the struggle and hardship of people trying to flee their homeland and find safety, it is only to show how people are treated and excluded in different ways when it comes to crises. In a class held a week and a half after Russia invaded Ukraine numerous of the students shared different opinions and thoughts about the situation, many of which were briefly mentioned above. These are assumingly also aspects of wars which certainly plenty of individuals have also been reflecting on. War or conflicts and their consequences shape a multitude of people’s lives, not only within the borders of the warzone but people around the globe.

On March 8th we celebrate International Women’s Day. The day is dedicated to celebrating women’s achievements and seeking gender equality.

International Women’s Day was marked for the first time in 1911 and the date March 8th was fixed in 1913. The first time the United Nations celebrated the day was in 1975. March 8th also has an annual theme and the UN and the UN Women have stated that the theme for the 2022 International Women’s Day is “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”.  The purpose of having this theme is to highlight the need for gender equality in the pursuit of having a sustainable future and to uplift women who are doing a tremendous job and working for climate change adaptation, mitigation and legislation to ensure a more sustainable future for everyone. Read more about sustainability and gender equality on UN’s and UN Women’s websites. Additionally, International Women’s Day declared that their 2022 campaign is #BreakTheBias. International Women’s Day on their website further explain their campaign as follows:

“Imagine a gender equal world.

A world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination.

A world that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive.

A world where difference is valued and celebrated.

Together we can forge women’s equality.

Collectively we can all #BreakTheBias.

Individually, we’re all responsible for our own thoughts and actions – all day, every day.

We can break the bias in our communities.

We can break the bias in our workplaces.

We can break the bias in our schools, colleges and universities.

Together, we can all break the bias – on International Women’s Day (IWD) and beyond.”

 

Biases, whether conscious or unconscious, are not only hurtful and dangerous but directly contributes to gender inequality and the belief of a more “weaker” or “incompetent” body and mind.  Biases are already placed on you as a woman and your sexuality, religion, race, nationality, language, ideology, disability and/or occupation can in many cases add to the already existing prejudice and discrimination directed to your gender. To #BreakTheBias globally would mean mobility and freedom for women all over. It would mean the possibility for women to act and speak as they desire. To hear more about the campaign you can check out Anisa Nandaula’s spoken word poet about #BreakTheBias.

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To find time for celebration might be hard or even impossible when following the current global conflicts and wars going around and seeing all women and so many others suffering and becoming refugees. However, today can be a day to donate to a charity aiding women, reflecting on female role models in your life or that you look up to or to read and educate yourself more on women’s issues and how conflicts and global warming places women in a vulnerable state. Regardless today is March 8th and this day is for us Women. I want to wish everyone who identifies as a Woman a really wonderful day wherever you might be. I wish that you have support, care and love in your surroundings and that despite anything you will succeed with all your dreams and passions. And for everyone who has a Woman in their life, as a mother, a daughter, a sister, a partner, a wife, a friend or even a neighbour, to be kind, encouraging, and respectful to Women.