The UN is concerned about racism in Norway. What does the research say?

Now the government must show that it prioritizes work against racism.

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On 18 March, an expert group from the UN reported that they fear for the situation of people with an African background in Norway. The UN is concerned about hate speech, racist bullying in schools and discrimination in the workplace.

The problems that the UN refers to are not unknown. Today, we have studies that document racism in Norway. In a themed issue of the Norwegian Sociological Journal, we, together with a number of research colleagues, have shown how and where racism takes place in Norway.

Status hierarchy between schools

Ingvil Bjordal finds that free school choice in Oslo leads to majority and minority students being concentrated in different schools. Thus, “white” and “brown” schools arise. At the same time, a status hierarchy is established between schools where “white schools” are seen as a safer and better school to attend, while “brown schools” are considered unattractive.

Ronald Mayora Synnes

Associate professor at the University of Agder. He is also a member of the Committee for gender balance and diversity and of Kilden gender research.

Solvor Lauritzen shows that anti-Gypsyism – racism directed against Roma and Romani people/Tatars – is not a stage of history that has passed, but appears in different ways in Norwegian society. Children’s services’ lack of knowledge about Roma leads to discrimination and negative attitudes. Roma children in the care of the child protection service are often placed with non-Roma families at secret addresses, without contact with siblings or parents.

Racism in sport

Prisca Massao and Bente Skogvang show that black Norwegian athletes experience that racism affects their development of Norwegian identity. These athletes are presented in the Norwegian media as not quite Norwegian Norwegians. It is white athletes who are portrayed as “real athletes”. At the same time, athletes are exposed to stereotypes and prejudices based on other athletes’ missteps.

In Solveig Hessaa-Szwinto’s study, it emerges that many Norwegians of East Asian origin experience racist, sexualized and hateful comments in Norwegian society. Many people have experienced shouts or talk of the following type: “Damn you!” “Do you eat dog?” “Ching chong!” “How much do you cost?”

Not prioritized by the government

Culture and Equality Minister Lubna Jaffery (Ap) believes that the government takes the criticism from the UN seriously.

After the Black Lives Matter movement in 2021, work against racism has gained greater importance in Norway. Nevertheless, racism does not have the same priority in the government as gender discrimination.

There are also some sectors, such as academia, where the government has shown great passivity. Ethnicity has been left out of the Ministry of Culture and Equality’s work with a new national strategy for equality. The action plan that Jaffery refers to does not include the university, college and institute sector (UHI sector) – a sector with as many as 39,800 researchers and professional staff and 298,000 students. 4.2 per cent of Norwegian students experience discrimination on the basis of ethnic origin.

Now the government must show that it prioritizes work against racism by including ethnicity in the national strategy for equality. In addition, the national equality strategy should include the large research sector.