Berkley Center

Sweden: progressive, equal, peaceful. These are the most notable words that reflect my initial assumptions about the country in which I am studying abroad. To be completely frank, I didn’t know much about Sweden before I decided to study here, and what I thought I knew has many caveats and complications.

I must first acknowledge that, despite some of my assumptions being incorrect or too simplistic, Sweden is a wonderful and incredibly progressive place. The things Swedish citizens take for granted—government provided healthcare, generous parental leave, affordable schooling, and policies that directly address discrimination and inequality—are things we are so far from obtaining in America. Both my host family and my classes continuously remind me of these benefits and emulate just how effective and important a welfare state can be.

Still, I came to Sweden with the knowledge that these welfare state ideals were being questioned and chastised, particularly by the Swedish Democrats, a right-wing political party with neo-Nazi roots. I read numerous articles this summer about their rise in response to Sweden’s open-door policy for immigrants and asylum-seekers. Their prominence also coincides with a right-wing backlash that is being seen across Europe and within the United States.

Sadly, the Swedish Democrats are strikingly similar to other right-wing, nationalist, and racist groups. I assumed (and hoped) that they were ignored and ostracized in Sweden’s liberal society, but my expectations have been proved wrong. The Swedish Democrats comprise a substantial part of the majority coalition in Stockholm’s municipal government, which comes both as a shock and utter disappointment. 

Last week, we met a member of the minority coalition, Sissela Nordling Blanco, who is a leader within a small and unique party—the Feminist Initiative (F!). Sissela is one of three F! members in Stockholm’s municipal government, which has 101 members in total. The party does not yet have representation in the National Parliament but has representatives in 22 municipal councils across Sweden. Sissela was exceptionally kind, authentic, and inspiring. She is young and passionate about furthering the praxis of F! Her presentation of F!—its fruition, growth, and goals—was both informative and thought-provoking.

Essentially, F! was created in response to a lack of feminism and intersectionality within Swedish politics. Most political parties in Sweden (with the exception of the Swedish Democrats) claim to be feminist, but tend to abandon feminist issues in negotiations and overlook feminist issues within larger societal matters. F! recognized this disparity and formed a party that places feminist and anti-racist lenses on all aspects of policy, society, and human rights. Rather than leaving feminism as an addendum to their party platform, everything they are, everything they do and fight for, is feminist.

Despite their small size and lack of national representation, F!’s power and influence must not be understated. They are bringing feminist issues to the forefront of discourse, while motivating other parties to realize how pervasive sexism, racism, etc. can be in Swedish society. An overarching theme of my core course—Gender, Sexuality, and Equality in Scandinavia—is how the progress Sweden has achieved in the face of discrimination and prejudice has not come easily. It has been the result of fights that underlie much of modern history and are still being fought today.

This was evident in our recent trip to Uppsala, Sweden, where we saw a museum exhibition titled “100% Fight—the History of Sweden.” This exhibit showed the many fights over human rights of Sweden’s past and present. One that particularly struck me concerned the sterilization of transgender people, a procedure that Sweden forced all transgender individuals to undergo until 2013. The recency of this gross injustice, coupled with the fact that my core course professor is transgender, further reinforced that Sweden is far more complicated than I had ever expected.

The progressive society that many Swedes take for granted is the result of activism, persistence, and perseverance. Their rights were won, not given, and the many people I have met and places I have seen remind me of this. They have upended my assumptions and motivated me to push harder for progress.