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Quantess

(27,630 posts)
3. Here's the rest of the article:
Thu May 23, 2013, 02:17 AM
May 2013

Demonstrators and community activists have attributed the rioting to anger over the May 13 fatal shooting by police of a 69-year-old man who police said had been brandishing a large knife or machete.

The man was shot inside his apartment in Husby, a poor suburb of about 11,000 people, mostly immigrants and refugees from Turkey, Lebanon, Syria and Somalia. Police didn't release his name or nationality.

Swedish police say they have launched an internal investigation into the case. But some demonstrators and local residents said they are frustrated at seeing police use what they consider to be excessive force in the deprived suburbs with seeming impunity.

"If police had shot someone in the city, they wouldn't have gotten away this easily," said one young Husby resident who declined to give his real name.

Another Husby resident said Tuesday night that while the shooting last week may have been a catalyst, tension had been building in the poor communities outside the capital for a long time.

Though small in scale, riots have erupted outside Swedish cities periodically in recent years, with tension between police and youths.

Megafonen, a community group that represents the interests of minorities in the Stockholm area, has lodged multiple complaints about substandard schools, unemployment and "structural racism."

Locals spoke of frustration over the lack of jobs—Husby has among the highest rates of youth unemployment—people neither working nor studying—in Sweden, at about 20%. Costs of living are also rising as the need to renovate the aging housing projects has driven up rents.

Akar Karim, 22 years old, who works as a student assistant at a nearby school, also stressed that after school, a lot of young people have little to do.

"They do nothing, just sit around on benches", he said. Many local parents don't have the money to enable their kids to partake in the kind of activities other Swedish youths do.

On Tuesday, Sweden's Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said that he was confident that Husby residents would be able to work through the tension. But he warned that more rioting may take place before the situation settled down.

Some residents predicted an increase in violence Wednesday night as some youth believe police will have their resources spread thin because of a soccer game at a nearby stadium.

Although there have been many arrests and property has been damaged, no fatalities have been reported in relation to the rioting.

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Since the article isn't visable defacto7 May 2013 #1
Inequality mwrguy May 2013 #2
Well, who wouldn't want to hire such enthusiastic, young go-getters? Nuclear Unicorn May 2013 #17
lol. good one. nt clarice May 2013 #26
Here's the rest of the article: Quantess May 2013 #3
These are, despite the careful language, race riots. MADem May 2013 #5
That title... Quantess May 2013 #6
They certainly are generous in absolute terms, but lately they've become less generous. MADem May 2013 #7
Yes and it is NOT the absolute amount of welfare or food stamps fasttense May 2013 #8
Well, that's a rather simple and neat packet--but there's more to it than that. MADem May 2013 #9
If they were as homogeneous and unwelcoming as you submit Nuclear Unicorn May 2013 #18
They aren't cruel or unkind. But they do put these "others" in de-facto ghettos. MADem May 2013 #20
Integration is a two-way street. Nuclear Unicorn May 2013 #22
It's not a two way street when you can't afford to integrate, when MADem May 2013 #28
I find it hard to justify/excuse/apologize for riots Nuclear Unicorn May 2013 #32
Who's justifying, excusing, or apologizing for RIOTS? MADem May 2013 #33
Exactly...i agree ....they are victims. jessie04 May 2013 #34
If the place becomes less hospitable, they will either assimilate or depart, more likely. MADem May 2013 #35
ASsimilate or depart ? Neither. jessie04 May 2013 #36
Time will tell. nt MADem May 2013 #37
The Lega Nord used to be bigoted against southern Italians! KamaAina May 2013 #39
Yes indeed--they sneered at anyone below the "red sauce line!!!" MADem May 2013 #42
do you think they are entitled to those generous benefits? Bacchus4.0 May 2013 #19
This is some serious shit happening, here: MADem May 2013 #4
BBC is reporting that the riots are a reaction by the Muslim community to aolice shooting marshall May 2013 #10
This is terrible. jessie04 May 2013 #11
Well actually it IS pretty shocking that some people Quantess May 2013 #12
They come to Sweden looking for a new life. jessie04 May 2013 #13
They don't live in "horrible conditions." The conditions they live in are better MADem May 2013 #29
"...that some people View profile choose..." greiner3 May 2013 #14
I don't understand your comment. (no text) Quantess May 2013 #16
I agree with you leftynyc May 2013 #15
Woundn't these people accept the economic role society has given them? happyslug May 2013 #21
That's why they moved to Stockholm marshall May 2013 #23
But economic role is what the Swedes intended for these people happyslug May 2013 #27
I'm not seeing a case for that. Quantess May 2013 #30
My point is WHY Sweden left these immigrants in the first place. happyslug May 2013 #38
These people come to Sweden .. jessie04 May 2013 #24
If someone was shot, and it appears too much force was likely used in a country that toby jo May 2013 #25
If they just had Swedes in Sweeden. Blue Hen Buckeye May 2013 #31
This all comes down to the fact the immigrants unreadierLizard May 2013 #40
You've got to look deeper. jessie04 May 2013 #43
iirc, wasn't Sweden one of the first countries to start accepting thousands Blue_Tires May 2013 #41
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