The Sami:
Scandinavia’s Guilty Conscience

Anna Dudzińska is the author of the new audio series produced by the Pismo magazine: The Sami: Scandinavia's Guilty Conscience

They were forbidden to speak their language. They were banned from singing, playing drums, and wearing traditional headgear. They were humiliated, spat on, and called names. They were forcibly evicted from their homes, and stripped of their land, and entire families were relocated hundreds of kilometers away. Children were sent to boarding schools to learn in a language they did not know. They had their naked pictures taken, their skulls measured, and their ancestors' bones dug up from cemeteries and examined. All to become Norwegians, Swedes, or Finns.

Listen to the stories of the last indigenous inhabitants of Europe—the Sami, contemptuously called the Lapps. Hear about people who are still fighting for their identity in countries that are considered paragons of tolerance, openness, and democratic values.

First episode premiere: 29 August 2024.

Production: Pismo Foundation