Stockholm, Sweden – A provocative advertising blitz by the far-right Sweden Democrats (SD) across public transportation hubs has sent ripples of fear and alienation through Sweden’s minority communities, with many feeling their integration efforts are rendered moot by a campaign that explicitly questions their belonging. The stark messaging, emblazoned on walls and buses, has been interpreted by some as a direct assault on their identity, amplifying historical traumas and raising concerns about the normalization of xenophobic rhetoric in a nation historically lauded for its openness.
The campaign, which saturated Stockholm’s Central Station with dozens of posters and installations, featured slogans such as, “If you commit crimes, live off benefits, don’t learn Swedish or misbehave, you’re not welcome.” Neira Tokalija, a 39-year-old therapist and second-generation immigrant whose family fled ethnic cleansing campaigns in Bosnia and Herzegovina, described the experience as deeply unsettling. Seeing the ubiquitous SD advertisements, she stated, evoked a visceral feeling that no matter her efforts to assimilate and contribute, she would perpetually be deemed "not Swedish enough."
The Sweden Democrats, a party with historical ties to neo-Nazi ideologies, reportedly invested approximately $100,000 in the Central Station campaign alone. This extensive display aimed to coincide with Sweden’s general election, where the SD, then polling second, held the potential to enter government for the first time. The intensity and scope of the messaging, which ran for a full week in mid-August, struck a chord with many, echoing past experiences of discrimination and exclusion.
Adding another layer of controversy, the SD also deployed aggressive advertisements on buses in western Sweden. One particularly incendiary poster read, “Do you miss Mogadishu? The repatriation grant will help you get home.” This advertisement targeted the Somali diaspora, a significant immigrant group in Sweden.
The repatriation grant itself has a long history, first introduced by a Social Democratic government in the 1980s to offer refugees a modest sum to return to their countries of origin. However, the current center-right coalition government, in collaboration with the SD, significantly increased the grant to approximately $36,000 per adult, framing it as a voluntary incentive for integration or return.
The "miss Mogadishu" campaign triggered an immediate and visible protest. Approximately 20 bus drivers of Somali descent called in sick, disrupting services and signaling their profound distress. In response, the public transport operator Vasttrafik promptly removed the offensive posters. A spokesperson for Vasttrafik cited the drivers’ fear of harassment, potential risks to the working environment, and the possibility of vandalism as reasons for the decision.
Zina al-Dewany, a political commentator and editorial writer for the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet, characterized the SD’s strategy as one designed to provoke. She explained that the party frequently employs campaigns that push boundaries, often positioning itself as a victim of censorship when its advertisements are removed. Following the bus campaign’s retraction, SD Member of Parliament Tobias Andersson issued a statement decrying the removal as "censorship" and "election sabotage."
The Shifting Political Landscape: Normalizing the Far-Right
For decades, the Sweden Democrats were largely ostracized by the Swedish political establishment, considered a fringe group with unacceptable ideologies. However, a significant shift began to occur following the 2018 general election, which resulted in a political stalemate. This deadlock prompted mainstream right-wing parties to re-evaluate their alliances and strategies.
In the ensuing years, a series of meetings and negotiations took place between the SD and the Christian Democrats and the Moderate Party. This culminated in a significant political development in October 2022, when the Liberal Party, previously resistant, also opened discussions with the SD. The culmination of these alliances was the signing of a 62-page agreement, known as the Tido Agreement, by the leaders of four right-wing parties, which effectively paved the way for the current coalition government.
A further symbolic boundary was crossed in May 2026 when Simona Mohamsson, the leader of the Liberal Party and the nation’s Minister for Education and Integration, announced that her party would permit the SD to participate in a future government. Mohamsson, herself an immigrant born in Germany to a Palestinian father and a Lebanese mother, moved to Sweden at age eight and has a public record of anti-racism activism. The announcement was met with a public gesture of reconciliation from SD leader Jimmie Åkesson, who offered Mohamsson a handshake. Her subsequent embrace of him sent a powerful, and to many, disturbing, signal across the Swedish political spectrum.
Echoes of Trauma and the ‘Bad Vibes’
For many staff members working in the cafes and shops around Stockholm Central Station during the SD’s week-long campaign, the audacious advertising was a stark manifestation of years of gradual political normalization. Ester, a barista at the station, expressed surprise at the sheer scale of the campaign, while her colleague Aya described the week as having generated palpable "bad vibes" throughout the bustling transit hub.
The government’s heightened focus on repatriation, particularly in the context of a series of highly publicized scandals involving immigration and deportation, has deeply unsettled these individuals. In February, the Swedish Migration Agency controversially ordered the deportation of an eight-month-old boy born in Sweden, Emanuel, to Iran, even as his immediate family retained their residency permits. Around the same period, teenagers who had grown up entirely in Sweden were facing deportation upon reaching adulthood, a practice the government eventually suspended in March and pledged to reform in June.
Amidst the unsettling atmosphere, one man, who requested anonymity, was actively collecting donations for a charity providing aid to Palestinians in Gaza at the station. While the SD campaign deeply upset him, he found solace in the public’s response. Heated debates erupted between members of the public and SD representatives stationed at the station, often centering on the party’s views on Islam and its unreserved support for Israel.
The engagement, while often confrontational, also yielded positive outcomes for the charity. Frustrated by the debates, several individuals made significant donations, contributing to a substantial increase in funds collected by the charity throughout the week. This grassroots resistance offered a glimmer of hope for those targeted by the far-right’s messaging.
Al-Dewany, the political commentator, also sees potential for a turning point, suggesting that the SD may have reached a stage of "peak populism." She posits that the party’s relentless focus on immigration, especially while the government is grappling with its own repatriation-related controversies, could now alienate voters rather than attract them. This sentiment is echoed in recent polls from late August, which placed the SD at 18-19 percent, a slight decrease from their 20.5 percent showing in the 2022 general election.
Tokalija, whose partner is from Mozambique, reflected on her initial arrival in Sweden, where she was met with "Swedish warmth" and genuine curiosity about different cultures. While she believes this welcoming spirit persists among many Swedes, she observes a significant shift in the public discourse surrounding immigrants. They are increasingly portrayed as "money-seekers," and society now, in her view, demands complete assimilation, forcing families like hers to shed their multicultural and even religious identities. This pressure, she stated, leaves individuals with a stark choice between total absorption or complete exclusion, a dilemma that tragically mirrors the fascist ideologies she once sought to escape. The pervasive presence of the SD’s message serves as a constant reminder that the fight for belonging and acceptance in Sweden remains an ongoing struggle for many.
