The publicity drive will include up to half a million copies of a newspaper-style pamphlet, public meetings and a synchronised series of motions in the councils where the party has representatives.
Press spokesman Mattias Karlsson told Sydsvenskan that the point of the campaign against immigration is twofold: first to remind the public of the “enormous problem” and secondly to present a “more toned down” image of the party.
“People still think that we want to throw out all immigrants,” said Karlsson.
In fact, he pointed out, the party merely wants “a massive reduction” in the number of immigrants coming to Sweden.
Additionally, the party is calling for local councils to ditch their diversity policies and for a block on funding of immigrant organisations. The use of other languages in schools should also be banned, says the party.
A recent poll revealed that the Sweden Democrats could soon be the third most popular party among Swedish men, with nearly six percent saying they support the far right organisation.
Speaking to Dagens Nyheter, Ulla Ekström von Essen, historian and contributor to a Board of Integration report on the Sweden Democrats, warned that the party is using its council representation as a springboard for spreading its anti-immigration message.
“For the first time in Sweden we have a populist xenophobic political movement in the local councils, built on the premise that the municipalities’ problems are immigrants’ fault,” she said.
Please whitelist us to continue reading.