Nine out of ten people in Finland think it is important to address the issue of racism in the country, according to a survey commissioned by the Finnish Red Cross (FRC).
A clear majority of respondents said they feel that racism "undermines their sense of safety, even if they themselves do not experience racism", the NGO said in a press release on Monday.
It said the vast majority, around 90 percent, of respondents said they felt that taking action against racism was important, while nearly as many said they think the fact that people experience racism in Finland was a serious matter.
About 85 percent of the respondents said they had witnessed or experienced racism — but only about 50 percent of them said they had intervened when they did.
As reasons for not taking action, these respondents mentioned that the situation was over quickly or that they did not know what to do.
Many respondents said they did not know how to act in those kinds of situations, while a quarter of respondents said they did not dare to intervene.
Taking action
The FRC's expert on anti-racism activities, Sanna Saarto, said "racism and discrimination exclude people from communities".
"When we take action against racism and discrimination, we strengthen trust and build communities and societies where everyone is safer," she said in the release.
The survey found 95 percent of teenagers and young adults (15-25 years old) saying they had experienced or witnessed racism.
Most young people (86 percent) observed racism online and on social media.
"We know from previous surveys that young people want adults, in particular, to take action against racism. Experiencing racism at a young age can affect a person for the rest of their life," Saarto said.
She added that taking action against racism might be challenging, but it is important.
"There are many ways to take action. Even small gestures or words can be enough to show your support for someone who is experiencing racism. Everyone can also influence practices in their own communities, such as workplaces or hobby groups," Saarto said in the release.
The Finnish Red Cross commissioned the survey, which was carried out by research firm Taloustutkimus between 16 and 19 February. A total of 1,179 people responded to the survey, 100 of whom had a mother tongue other than Finnish, Swedish or Sami. There was a margin of error of 3.1 percent in either direction.
