Inga-Lill Bengtsson: ”There’s no law about what rules apply in the laundry-room. We must pluck up courage and talk about it”

Knit for Peace meets in Kulturhuset in Broby every Thursday between 4:45 and 7 pm, and every Friday from 10 am till 12:15 pm. They would lke more people to come along, especially men.

You might think, ”What’s the point, knitting white doves and sending them to the decision-makers? That won’t change anything”.

Don’t say that. A thought that is allowed to develope leads to new thoughts and insights.

That is why it is rewarding to write about other good forces. Frökne School IF (Sports Club) received the prize for the most including club of the year at Idrottgalan (the Sports Gala). We say, Congratulations. You can read more about the club on page 10.

Women (and a few men as well) who are active in night patrols, one at Gamlegården and one at Challan, make a difference. There is a new meeting-place in Knislinge, with a study-circle for women about living in Sweden. Teaching women is the best way to reach both men and children – that is the view of the Tenants’ Association, who came up with the idea.

Kulturhuset in Broby is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. There will be a party on 9th February. You can find more about Östra Göinge’s spring culture programme in this issue of Kb Mosaik.

The Swedish Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen, AF) will change its way of working in the future. Private actors will take over the work of finding jobs for people. AF will keep check on the private actors.

Just now, at the time of writing, there is no money left for additional services which have been an effective springboard for both new arrivals and for others who have had problems in finding a job. More than 500 people in Kristianstad and Östra Göinge alone are affected. Read more about additional services on page 15.

Kb Mosaik is into its fourth year. Staff members Mohamad Kanina and Sofyan Aswad are working hard to learn Swedish and discover more about how the community functions. These two, along with Moira Uggla and Shawana Badat, who both translate into English, are cornerstones in the project.

Read Sofyan’s chronicle about the discrimination he experienced when he was looking for a job. And read about Bakri Rawas who is getting a new chance to go back to teaching.

Swedish law regulates what you are allowed to do on the roads. There are no laws about what you may or may not do i the laundry-room. We must pluck up courage and talk about it.

We must have the courage to explain to all the newcomers to Sweden how we do things. We must be clear.

What do we expect from everyone who is new in our country? Exchanging ideas can lead to new insights – and give us a better understanding of one another.