The number of second-generation Finns - meaning people born in Finland with one or both parents born abroad - climbed above the 100,000 mark in 2025.
Smallsteps is counted among them of course. But as far as many people I know are concerned, she doesn't quite "qualify" as being foreign-background, even when they know that I am Australian. Just the other day, a mother of one of Smallsteps' friends was talking to me about how many of the kids in her child's former class are of "foreign-background" and it created problems. We were speaking in English, and this was said without any kind of recognition that Smallsteps is one of those children. This is because Smallsteps is white enough and speaks Finnish.
She will have it pretty easy compared to other kids.
Other foreign background kids who are not white (even if born here and speak Finnish like a native), will unlikely ever be seen as Finnish and they will suffer various forms of discrimination because of it. All through their life they will get the follow up question to "where are you from?" of
"No, where are you really from?"
Smallsteps won't get much of this, but what she will get are people who make assumptions about her background based on her looks, and "speak freely" like the mother of her friend. This in itself is going to create all kinds of awkward situations and conversations, especially as anti-foreign sentiment builds on the back of foreigners getting blamed for whatever problems are country might face, whether it be rising crime or poor employment figures.
Not that a meritocracy is always the best solution, but it would be interesting to see what happens over time to the integration of foreign-background people if the most qualified were the ones who got the opportunities. Not just certificate-based qualification, but if it was possible to put the best fit into the role without having to regard skin colour or perceived skill on background. Would the unemployment rate of foreigners in Finland stay static?
I once worked in a company that had about 200 foreigners and 10 Finns. Nine of the Finns were management, and none of the foreigners would get a look in, even when they spoke Finnish. However, many of the foreigners (localisation testing for mobile phones) were well and truly over-skilled for their roles, with professors and doctors, masters and engineers sitting there doing basic language testing. And this job was a "good job" compared to what they had been doing prior, with them being cleaners and garbage men, stocking shelves and changing bed linens.
These weren't Finnish-born people.
However those who stayed, generally end up like me, having a family and having one of those 100,000+ second-generation Finnish children who may or may not blend in visually. But, that child grows up in a household that likely doesn't have access to the same opportunities and experiences as a kid born to Finnish parents. This obviously has an effect on how their life turns out in many respects, as well as their attitudes in comparison to most others. Whether it makes them more competitive or not depends on many variables, like what kind of neighbourhood, school environment and social network they are part of.
Most of my friends are Finnish, though we also have a few "foreign" family friends also who have children. However for the most part, I would say that Smallsteps lives a pretty traditional Finnish childhood, but there are obvious differences. For instance, we speak English at home and she speaks Finnish when it is just the Mother around. But, since I don't ski, skate (well), get into hockey that much, care about Christmas foods etc - we also have differences. But the main difference is that despite many factors, I don't have the same work opportunities as neighbours. This isn't just because of my lacking Finnish skills, but because assumptions are made about skills in general. For instance, people assume I never went to university and when they find out I did, they say about how Finnish education systems are the best in the world, to diminish the education of others - even though that is no longer true and hasn't been for a couple decades.
While racism and similar might not be as overt as it once was in the world, there is little denying that it isn't present and all of these differences mount up to create challenges that many people will not have to face. These many small hurdles compound to create quite large variations in outcomes on average and can have profound effects on both the individual and society. It would seem easier for many to cut out this challenge and have a homogenised population, because that means less conflict. But I would suspect that the same level of conflict would be present, it would just be on even more minor differences between people and we can see this from the past and the present.
I have always found it pretty stupid to make judgements based on arbitrary traits like looks, but I equally find it stupid to make assumptions that "diversity is valuable" when it is also only using those same arbitrary traits. Diversity of thought and skill is valuable when it adds collateral to the potential, but thought and skill diversity isn't inherently present just because someone has different skin, eye or hair colour, or how they identify sexually or socially. It is nonsense.
Yet, we can make some generalisations on things based on likely experience, and this is what many Finns are doing when they make their assumptions about foreigners, foreign-background and the like also. Often they make an assumption that a foreigner comes to Finland to run away from bad situations elsewhere, like war, poverty and the like, and most can't really comprehend people moving here by choice. This means that they assume that foreigners should consider themselves "lucky to be here" and therefore willing to accept less than what would be offered to a Finnish person. As a result, most foreigners in the country are going to end up having that experience, and if they want to stay, will have to accept it, because they will never be seen as more than the assumption by most Finns. It is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and over the space of decades, has profound effects on the outcomes of the second-gen children.
Maybe it balances over time, but if you look at even the countries that have been almost entirely built on foreigners like the US and Australia, centuries later, the problems still exist. Not as overtly as once, but in the current environment, becoming more so again. And as more economic pressures impact countries globally, it is only going to get worse, where people will demand locals first with "local" being people who look like them.
With all of our intelligence and potential, humans are pretty stupid creatures that limit our results because we are unable to get over even the most irrelevant of discomforts. They say "assumptions are dangerous" yet we keep making them, even when we have very little direct experience to inform us. And our behaviours aren't based on what will generate the best results, but what is easiest for us to accept.
Even the conversation about kids born to foreigners creates problems, because in the minds of all the Finns, all those foreign born children look and act differently to them, even so the differences might be by force, not by choice. People will act accordingly to the way they are treated. It doesn't mean that each individual will react in the same way, but it does mean that it impacts on how they move forward through life. And no, it doesn't mean that everyone is damaged, because for those who learn from experience in order to grow, they can use it as a fuel source. But for many, the tools to grow from hardship haven't been instilled, so damage is the likely outcome.
Most people believe they are above prejudice based on arbitrary traits, but very few of us are, because we are human and we make judgements and assumptions, before we even become aware of our thoughts. Whether we let these things influence our behaviours towards others in how we treat them, well that is more within our control, but even that takes awareness and intention and in a world where most people have become more self-focused and less connected to others, it is probably degrading also.
It is going to be interesting to see how Smallsteps progresses through life and deals with what she faces, but I am not setting her up as a victim of circumstances, but an agent in her own creation. It is up to me to try and fill her toolbox, but it will be up to her to use the tools she has to make her life the best she can. She is almost certainly going to face challenges from those around her based on her background, and challenges she carries from the home, because of my background.
We all face challenges.
Nothing is fair, nor equal.
And no matter what our background, we are all going to be replaced. Hopefully by better.
Taraz
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