Reykjavík Grapevine - 24.05.2019, Side 48

L IF E , T R AV EL & EN T ER TA INMEN T IN ICEL A ND
Issue 08 × 2019
May 24th—June 6th
www.grapevine.is
LAST WORDS
Nazis At
The Pool
Words: Natalie Ouellette
Photo: Þorsteinn Jónsson
Since moving to Iceland five years ago, I've
been repeatedly shocked by the racism that
exists in this country, and the complacency
from Icelanders that enables it to thrive.
My most recent experience with this worry-
ing phenomenon was when I took my kids to
Árbæjarlaug pool on a sunny Sunday morning
and swam amongst not one but two people
with a plethora of white supremacist tattoos
exposed on their bodies—swastikas among
them. When I asked an employee what the
policy was on visitors with racist tattoos, they
said: “There is no policy that I know of. Iceland
is a small country, and is still a little racist.”
Feeling once again like I was getting the
same old "well-what-can-you-do-about-this-
tiny-island-insert-shrugging-emoji” answer,
I sent the same question to the City Council.
The response I received a few days later was
directly from the Human Rights Office, saying
that tattoos fall under a person's freedom of
expression. To me, this sounds a lot like the
lame excuse that Trump pulls out of his ass
when he is caught accepting money from white
supremacists. Shouldn’t symbols of racism
and anti-semitism fall under the category of
hate speech?
From the average citizen all the way up to
city hall, I've come to the frustrating conclu-
sion that racism is something that is just ac-
cepted in Iceland. It’s rarely even discussed
with any seriousness. Meanwhile, peacefully
protesting refugees who are voicing their need
for basic human rights—much like those en-
joyed by the Nazis at the pool—are pepper-
sprayed by the police.
To the people of Iceland I have this to say—
enough is enough. Stop making excuses for
Icelandic racists, and stand up against what
you know to be wrong. And stop the double
standard against people who come here to seek
a better life. Just because we live in a small and
isolated country doesn't mean that we're in-
capable of change. Our actions today towards
increasing acceptance and tackling hatred will
have profound effects on society—and future
generations will thank us. WWW.RSS.IS • +354 497 5000 • INFO@RSS.IS
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