Professor of Ethics Ann Heberlein has argued that blonde people in Sweden are subjected to racist abuse and violence from “people with a non-European appearance”.
Ms. Heberlein, who appears regularly on Swedish Radio’s “Thoughts for the Day” and “Philosophical Room”, says blonde and Swedish victims of this racism choose to stay silent because “anti-racist” left wingers say that as a “privileged” group, ethnic Swedes have no right to complain.
The professor at Lund University describes the racist abuse hurled at white women in Sweden, with phrases like “Svenne (meaning ethnic Swede) whore” and “bloody racist whore” shouted at them by people with migrant backgrounds.
Ms. Heberlein notes that when Swedes answer back to these “unwelcome overtures”, they’re met with further “abusive epithets and sometimes physical violence”.
She addresses the issue of a recent incident in which she and her teenage daughter were standing waiting to cross a road when, from a passing car, a man stuck his head out of the sunroof to scream “f***ing blondes!”
Professing that, while always shaken after receiving anti-blonde abuse, she had “so far chosen to remain silent” on the issue, Ms. Heberlein recounted people’s reactions when she decided to post about the incident with the passing car on Facebook.
While “it turns out other blonde women recognise themselves, tragically” in her account, she noted, the angry reaction from “anti-racists” served to remind her why Swedish victims of racism don’t speak out.
“One of my Facebook friends, a fairly well-known poet and anti-racist activist recounted my story on his wall. The discussion that ensued which reminded me of why I had previously chosen not to say anything when I have been exposed to degrading treatment because of my appearance, my ‘race’, if you will. ‘I get so tired [of this],’ ‘Is she for real?’, ‘Racist’ were some of the reactions.”
Reporting that her experience was “questioned and belittled” by seasoned “anti-racists”, Ms. Heberlein recounted that when she entered into the discussion she learned she should “keep quiet and stop whining”.
After arguing that all “all people, regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation and political opinion” should have a right to respect and safety in public, Ms. Heberlein was told by these “anti-racists” it is impossible for her to be a victim of racism because, as a white woman, she is “privileged”.
Ms. Heberlein describes their reasoning for why she should tolerate anti-blonde abuse, which is that white people are the ones with power in Sweden, as “obviously unreasonable”.
She asserts that while “it’s probably more common” for people with migrant backgrounds to be victimised by racist attacks, ethnic Swedes are not spared. Ms. Heberlein points to two horrific instances which people argue were hate crimes but notes they were not treated this way by the public prosecutor.
One of these is the beheading of a mother and murder of her son in IKEA, where the Eritrean perpetrator admitted choosing his victims because they “looked Swedish”. Ms. Heberlein also drew attention to a violent gang rape in Strängnäs, where the attackers taunted their victim, saying “I’m gonna f*** you, little Swedish girl”.
The professor of ethics states that in a fair society, all citizens should have the same rights and no one should be discriminated against for characteristics like their sex and race. “That this obvious and basic premise is not shared by everyone in our society is shocking,” she wrote.
Ms. Heberlein concluded: “The incident at the crossing in Lund, I have shaken off a long time ago – but the macabre discussion that ensued on my anti-racist friend’s facebook page regarding the impossibility of a white woman being exposed to racism, I will not forget.”
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