The Integration Spectacle

Abstract

Migration politics in Finland are centered around “social integration” and “multiculturalism.” While the stated aims of such politics are equality and social mobility, the results are often contradictory, perpetuating the hierarchies and inequalities they propose to overcome. Utilizing Guy Debord’s notion of the “society of the spectacle,” I argue that there is a neoliberal Integration Spectacle that projects the appearance of societal change but is, in reality, an immobilizing force that works to obscure a particular racialized social order. I draw on my fieldwork in and around Varissuo, an international working-class suburb on the edge of Turku, western Finland, to analyze how both migrant residents of the area and the professionals within the so-called integration economy engage with, reproduce, and deal with this discrepancy.

Lähiö paikassa ikääntymisen affektiivisena tilana

“…Näiden lähiöiden joukossa oli muun muassa Varissuo (Huttunen & Juntunen 2020). Varissuolla oli kylläkin ollut pakolaisia jo 1980-luvulta alkaen, mutta pienemmässä määrin (Huttunen & Juntunen 2020;Laakkonen 2022).…”

Perceived challenges living and integrating into Finnish society: A study among immigrants in Finland

“…Finnish integration policy is not just on paper. Despite the criticism (Laakkonen, 2021), it has been successfully implemented to a certain degree. However, despite these efforts by the state authorities and NGOs, the experiences of immigrants living and integrating into Finnish society are not without challenges.…”