This provocative, apartheid-reeking initiative caused a sensation in the social media. Subsequently a Facebook announcement about the forum was removed due to numerous complaints by enraged users.
Curiously, HelFem saw nothing disparaging in either the sub-forum name or their approach in general. According to HelFem representatives, the idea was pretty much the opposite: namely, to eliminate racial persecution and hate speech and raise awareness about ethnic minorities through positive discrimination.
No Whites Allowed — turvallisempi tila feministisenä toimintana. Miksi? Lue täältä #femf2016 #ftila #feminismi https://t.co/HomcEIv80T
— HELFEM (@helfemhki) November 9, 2016
"Mainstream feminism is very white. Sometimes people use feminist messages simply for promoting their own brand," a HelFem representative told Yle, citing the dominating percentage of white women in institutions working against discrimination.
Given the fact that Finland remains the most ethnically homogenous and conservative Nordic country immigration-wise, with the share of non-Finns hovering at about 3 percent of the population (compared with Sweden's 17 percent), it is no wonder HelFem's compatriots were not particularly impressed with the idea of using "positive" discrimination to eliminate the "negative" one. Unlike many European nations, Finland has neither had an imperial past nor overseas colonies, which is why the intention to induce a sense of guilt has never struck home.
Among others, Sebastian Tynkkynen, who is chairman of the Finns Party Youth League, reported the "No Whites Allowed" idea for racism.
Remarkably, HelFem dismissed all accusations of "reverse racism." According to the group, organized racism requires structures and institutions, and whereas people of color never have structures on their side, reverse racism simply cannot exist.
