Indicator reports that a number of former clients and volunteers have come forward with their experience of discrimination and disrespectful treatment at Family Aid Iceland, on the basis of religion and nationality.
The chairman of Family Aid has been said to have commissioned volunteers to give Muslim women less food than Icelanders. Refusal to follow these instructions could lead to “shouting”, said Gyða Dröfn Hannesdóttir, who was a volunteer with the organization. She felt compelled to leave family support after witnessing this discrimination.
In 2010, Indicator sent a short transcript of an interview that Fréttablaðið’s journalist had with Ásgerður Jóna Flosadóttir, the director of Fjölskylduhjálp. In this fragment, which only reports the first minute of the conversation, Flosadóttir explained that although Fjölskylduhjálp is determined to help all those in need, the organization sometimes decides to prioritize Icelanders. This, in addition to new reports on discrimination, concerns many. It will be disappointing that a decade later, no action has been taken to address discrimination within the organization.
Fjölskylduhjálparinn’s website states that they provide assistance to people “regardless of their origin”, but these recent descriptions of discrimination from customers and volunteers show that it is not that simple to implement. There is a greater debate about structures of power that inform bias and influence cases of discrimination such as these, and an interaction method is needed to meet the needs of all those facing financial difficulties: Icelanders as well as foreigners.
By 2020, there has been a growing awareness of racism, discrimination and human rights, and of course Iceland is not exempt from this debate. You can read more about racism in Iceland here.
Source: The Nordic Page