Somalis in Aarhus feel discriminated

the Mood around the somali minority in the country's second largest city has changed considerably over the last few days.

It says somalis in Aarhus, which Ekstra Bladet has met.

It is a minority of the somali danes, who live in Aarhus Municipality, who is infected with the coronavirus.

But the consequences, after it was published, that three out of four of those infected with the disease in the municipality had somali background, has had far-reaching consequences.

- It has really created a sense of otherness, says Abshir Sheikhdon, who works as a social worker.

In the morning, starts his son in school, and he is afraid that the last few days mention of the somalis in the area means that his son will be teased in school, or that he is being treated differently.

- When politicians like Pia Kjærsgaard and the mayor of Aarhus, Jacob Bundsgaard, pointing at us as a group, it can have both psychological and integration problems, says Abshir Sheikhdon.

Pia Kjærsgaard calls to close the contrast and said, that, not gone hard enough to somalierne. Jacob Bundsgaard was in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten shocked by the percentage of infected somalis.

- There are many young somalis who want to have a good education and be a part of society, he says.

- Why should they be put in the crib, when they don't have anything with coronasmitten to do?

Overall, in the municipality live almost 5000 somalis, and those infected with the disease constitute a very small part of them.

Abshir Sheikhdon has lived in Denmark since 1995. He has, in the quarter of a century he has lived here, often experienced, that the somalis are being treated differently - even more than other minority groups.

- When this happens, and people talk about the somalis on the way, so it's like bumping into a long series of mini-traumas. We are always identified specifically, and we are stigmatized of all we do.

Also Ahmed Jibril, who is a researcher in medical physics and spokesperson for the Somali Association in århus, denmark, believes that it is not right that politicians and the public are pointing the finger at the somali minorities.

- We hear through our associations, that the somalis are being sent home from work, and the children must not play on the playgrounds.

He message is simple.

Coronaviruses do not know ethnicity. It is a pandemic, and if we must fight, then we need to stand together. It is not that politicians go out and stand us apart.

Although mayor Jacob Bundsgaard has been in dialogue with a number of somali associations, and they are preparing some solutions to smitteproblemet, it does not help, believe Ahmed Jibril.

- It is too late, he says.

- the Damage is done.