The head office building of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI)in Oslo. Source: Wikipedia
Discrimination against the Sámi remains a widespread problem that occurs in many social areas. This is shown in a quick overview from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI), which has mapped the research available on harassment and discrimination against the Sámi in Norway, Sweden and Finland in the period 2014–2024.
The researchers included a total of 32 studies in the quick overview, of which 19 were from Norway, eight from Sweden, four from Finland and one had data from both Norway and Sweden. The study design was divided into 16 qualitative studies, 13 quantitative studies and three multi-method studies. Read below about the main results and conclusions of the review.
The reviewed studies included approximately 76,500 unique participants, and of these approximately 18,300 (24%) had Sámi affiliation of different type. Ethnicity and Sámi affiliation were mainly reported by the participants themselves. The vast majority of studies, 29 out of 32 studies, included adults (18–74 years), while 14 out of 32 studies included the elderly (over 75 years) and seven studies included children and young people (under 18 years) in the study sample (31 of 32 studies included different age groups). When we look at the gender distribution in the 32 included studies, we found that one study consisted exclusively of men (45), while three studies included only women (34; 35; 69).
The majority of the included studies have carried out population surveys or interviews with Sámi living throughout Sápmi in the country in which the survey was carried out.
This map, drawn by Anders Suneson, is based on the Nordic Museum's map of Sápmi. Illustration: Anders Suneson.
Among the included studies, there are also several that only include Sámi participants from smaller, more limited geographical areas. In the studies from Norway, the sample in two of the studies consists mainly of participants from Troms and Finnmark (15;68), one study consists of shared farmers from the Lule Sámi and Marka Sámi areas (South Troms and northern Nordland) (40), one study with participants from the Southern Sámi area (57), one study with participants from the Northern Sámi area (53) and one study consisting of participants from one Sámi organization and Sámi students living in a city in central Norway (42). From Sweden, there is one study that includes Sámi living in the Stockholm area (63).
11,600 participants answered the questionnaire (a response rate of 27%), of which 55.6% were women and the average age was 50 (Hansen 2016) (67). In the study, the following five ethnic subgroups were created:
a) "Strong Sámi connection" consists of those people who answered YES to all three following questions: "I myself have Sámi as my home language", "My ethnic background is Sámi" and "I consider myself Sámi".
b) "Sámi affiliation" were those who answered YES for Sámi to one or two (but not all three questions) mentioned above.
c) "Sámi background" was defined as those who reported Sámi family background with either language or ethnicity of parents or grandparents, but not defined themselves as Sámi (by self-perceived Sáminess, their own background is Sámi or used/uses Sámi language at home).
d) "Norwegian KO" if a Swedish or other ethnicity marker was stated in addition, and thus representing a mixed ethnic category.
e) "Norwegian" if only Norwegian markers were given;
A total of 3,928 (34.1%) of the participants stated that they had some form of Sámi affiliation. Of these, 59.1% stated that they had strong Sámi affiliation, 11.9% that they were Sámi, 12.7% that they had a Sámi family background, and 9.5% stated that they had Sámi family background, but that they did not consider themselves Sámi (67).
Eriksen (2015) found that Sámi ethnicity was strongly associated with being exposed to violence, both among women and men. Almost half (45%) of the Sámi participants reported having been exposed to violence, compared to about a third of the non-Sámi participants (33%). Sámi respondents were also almost twice as likely to report having been exposed to violence in the past 12 months as non-Sámi respondents (Sámi: 4.1%; non-Sámi: 2.6%). Furthermore, the study found that there was a connection between experiences of violence (all types of violence) and living in areas with a majority Sámi population, even after adjustment for ethnicity.
A similar pattern was observed when the different types of violence were assessed separately, even if only then was significant for physical violence among women. The study also found a connection between the experience of violence in childhood and ethnicity among men, with the highest incidence among non-Sámi men. Sámi ethnicity was found to be a risk marker for violence in a life course perspective with an odds ratio (OR) of 1.8 for Sámi women, and 2.2 for Sámi men. When it was adjusted for socio-economic and demographic factors, connection to Laestadianism, as well as consumption of alcohol, the risk of violence and abuse decreased somewhat, but it was still significantly elevated (OR = 1.6 for Sámi women and 1.9 for Sámi poor men).
The study conducted by Friborg (2017) found that the proportion who reported discrimination was significantly higher in the Sámi groups compared to the rest of the population.
The proportion of people who reported some form of discrimination was 15.4% in the group with Norwegian Sámi background, 28.4% in the group with Sámi affiliation and 44.6% in the group with strong Sámi affiliation, compared to 8.7% in the other the population.
In Hansen studies (2016, 2017), half of the Sámi with a strong Sámi connection reported having been discriminated against. Of these, 34.3% stated that this had happened before, and 16.5% within the last two years. Ethnic discrimination was reported by 33.3% of the male and 31.9% of the female Sámi respondents with strong Sámi affiliation. Sámi with self-reported Sáminess also reported a high degree of discrimination (total 32.8% [24.5% previously and 8.4% in the last two years]). In comparison, a total of 14.3% of Sámi did not report discrimination, with 9.9% in the past and 4.4% in the last two years.
Hansen (2017) found that this connection between ethnicity and perceived discrimination was still present adjusted for age, gross income and level of education, and that they the highest prevalence rates were reported by Sámi with a strong Sámi affiliation (OR = 6.16 [5.42-7.00]). Sámi men and women with strong Sámi affiliation who lived in Sámi minority areas reported the highest levels of discrimination (58.3% and 56.9% respectively). Sámi respondents with strong Sámi affiliation reported that they had experienced more discrimination during the last two years significantly more often than non-Sámi respondents (16.5% vs. 4.4%, respectively; p < 0.001; OR=4, 15 KI:3.45-4.99).
Sámi with a Sámi family background had the highest reporting of discrimination occurred earlier, but similar numbers to non-Sámi for incidents in the last two years.
Although many Sámi feel that they have been discriminated against, few Sámi have been in contact with the Equality and Discrimination Ombudsman (LDO) (only 1.8%).
Fladmoe (2019) from Norway examined the extent of hate speech among members of a selection of Sámi organizations, among lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgender people (LGBT) and in a sample of the general population. In the population survey, the results for Sámi are not treated in isolation, and we therefore do not state the results from the population survey (see table 2 and 'inclusion criteria' in the method chapter for more information). The results from the organizational survey showed that the majority of respondents from the Sámi organizations had experienced disparaging and hateful expressions.
As many as 65% of members reported having been subjected to derogatory comments, while 53% had experienced hate speech during the past year.
A cross-sectional study carried out by the Folkhälsomyndigheten (43) in Sweden mapped health, living conditions and lifestyles among the Sámi compared to the rest of the population. The results did not specify the cause of incitement and violence, but showed that a larger proportion of Sámi (26.2%) than the rest of the population (18.1%) reported feeling violated or threatened with violence during the last three months.
When it came to having been exposed to physical violence and threats of violence in the past twelve months, there was no significant difference between Sámi and the rest of the population. However, a larger proportion of Sámi women (29.7%) reported having experienced violations and threats of violence compared to women in general (19.4%). On the other hand, a larger proportion of Sámi men than men in general stated that they have been treated in a way that made them feel violated during the last three months (22.5 and 12.7% respectively).
Gjertsen (2017, 2019) from Norway mapped the living conditions of people with developmental disabilities in Sámi areas in Norway and whether there were areas where their living conditions in Sámi areas seemed to differ from the living conditions of people with developmental disabilities in the country in general (47). The studies found that a significantly higher proportion of the participants with a social background reported having psychological problems and having been exposed to bullying, threats and violence.
Among other things, 33% of those with a Sámi background stated that they had recently been afraid of being beaten or harassed when they went out alone where they lived, compared with 17% among those without a Sámi background. Furthermore, a higher proportion of respondents with a Sámi background stated that they had experienced being told ugly things to (42%), were bullied (48%), threatened with violence (33%) or had been injured (19%). The figures for respondents without Sámi background/identity are 35%, 29%, 11% and 11% respectively. So poor women with developmental disabilities were more exposed to these negative experiences than Sámi men.
La Parra-Casado (2023) and Sebastian (2024) investigated the extent of discrimination in the Sámi population in Sweden. They found that historical trauma was the most frequent reason for discrimination (56.1%), followed by ethnicity (41.0%) and having been treated in an offensive way in the past three months because of ethnicity (12.6%). One in ten (8.9%) reported all three forms of discrimination, while one a third of the people did not report any form of discrimination (32.1%).
In the study by Sebastian (2024), 4.3% reported being threatened in the past year, 26.1% humiliated in the past three months, and 40.8% had experienced discrimination.
The study by Møllersen (2023) from Norway aimed at investigating health-related living and working conditions among Southern Sámi reindeer herders. The data is taken from a national research project, "Reindrifta's everyday life", which has mapped a number of factors of importance for mental health and quality of life in the Sámi reindeer herding population in Southern Sámi areas. The study found extensive discrimination and marginalization of the reindeer herders, especially from society at large, including the authorities, the media and people outside the reindeer herding industry.
A full 69% stated that they had been subjected to harassment because of their affiliation with the reindeer herding industry, and 49% had experienced threats, damage or violence from people outside the industry. Furthermore, the authors found that the risk of reduced mental health and quality of life increased in parallel with the degree of discrimination and negative treatment from the outside world.
The study conducted by Yasar (2023) investigated the extent of discrimination among Sámi people in Norway and Sweden. The study found that Sámi ethnicity was associated with more than doubling the likelihood of experiencing discrimination compared to the general population.
Use of Sámi language in situations outside the family (so-called "general use") was associated with a 65% increase in the probability of experiencing discrimination, controlled for use of Sámi language with family members at home.
The multi-method study carried out by Brandén (2024) is part of the project "Violence against Sámi women" 2021–2024, and was carried out on behalf of the Sámi Parliament in Sweden. The study found that Sámi women were exposed to more violence than women in general in Sweden.
More than half were exposed to sexual violence (55.5%), seven out of ten to psychological violence (68.5%), and almost one in three to physical violence (27.9%). It also included higher incidences of serious forms of sexual violence, such as attempted rape and rape. Sámi women also reported higher levels of psychological and physical violence compared to Swedish women in general.
LGBTQ4 Sámi were also more exposed to violence, with significantly higher reporting of sexual, psychological and physical violence compared to other Sámi. Around 40.8% of the Sámi in general stated that they had experienced discrimination or racism because of their Sámi affiliation, with a higher proportion among Sámi women. These figures underline the increased vulnerability to violence and discrimination among the Sámi and in particular among LGBTQ Sámi.
The multi-method study carried out by Hansen (2021) investigated the extent of discrimination among young Sámi in Norway. The results showed that around 3 out of 4 (76.6%) had experienced being discriminated against at least once. Ethnic background was the most frequent reason for discrimination (51%), followed by gender (23%) and geographical affiliation (21%). Most experienced discrimination a few times a year (41%), while 9.5% experienced it a few times a month or a few times a week. Furthermore, almost all of the said young people and young adults (95%) reported that they had experienced people being prejudiced against their Sámi group, where 18.6% experienced prejudice "very often", 40.5% "often", 35.7% "sometimes", and only 5.2% experience it "never".
When we look at the studies cross-sectionally, they found a higher incidence of discrimination, bullying, violence and threats among Sámi in all age groups, and several times higher than in the general the population. Sámi men and women with strong Sámi affiliation reported the highest levels of discrimination, especially those living in Sámi minority areas.
The results in the included studies do not indicate that there is any clear trend of increase or decrease in discrimination over time based on the results, and discrimination is still a current problem. Two of the cross-sectional studies found that around half of the participants with a Sámi background had experienced discrimination in the last two years.
The Sámi reindeer herding population seems to experience a particularly large amount of discrimination, threats, violence and damage to animals and property. People from a double minority (LGBT Sámi people or Sámi with a disability) also seem to experience a lot of discrimination.
Overall, there were only a few studies that explicitly investigated where, and in what contexts, harassment and discrimination against the Sámi occurs. The studies of Hansen (2016, 2017) from Norway found that Sámi more often experience discrimination in several arenas at the same time, compared to non-Sámi, especially at school, in working life and in the local community.
Many Sámi also reported violations in public, on the internet, and during daily activities such as shop visits. Discrimination when looking for a job, buying a home, and loans were less common, and there were no gender differences in the degree of discrimination.
Hansen (2021) found that the school was the most common arena for discrimination, followed by the internet and encounters with the public, with few experiencing bullying at school recently, but many reporting online harassment because of their Sámi background. Brå (2024) in Sweden found hatred against the Sámi in various environments, especially at school, the workplace, at home, in public places and on the internet. Fladmoe (2019) from Norway reported that hate speech most often occurred on the internet and in social media (comment field, online forum), e-mail, telephone/SMS, the neighbourhood, public transport, school, place of study, workplace and other arenas.
Hokkanen (2017) from Finland found that Sámi still experience discrimination. For the adult informants, this particularly applied in working life, while the younger informants reported discrimination in several other arenas in addition to working life. The discrimination experienced by the younger informants the workplace was often linked to their disabilities, while the discrimination the adult informants experienced were more often linked to their ethnicity.
The study by Stoor (2019) from Norway included 20 Sámi and two non-Sámi, in southern, Lule, Marka, coastal and northern Sámi communities. Several of the informants stated that they had both experienced negative treatment by society at large and being socially excluded or not fully out accepted in their Sámi society. This could be due to "too weak" Sámi identity, to belong to a family with a bad reputation, mental disorders or have been admitted for treatment for this, or belong to a sexual minority. Several of the participants pointed out further that although they were exposed to more negative treatment than other Sámi, a double stigmatisation, exclusion from and within Sámi society was worse in that it deprived them an important opportunity for security and protection from negative treatment by others.
A consistent finding in the studies that have investigated the Sámi's experiences with health and care services was the lack of linguistic and cultural competence about Sámi among caregivers and health personnel in general. Many Sámi talked about the need to learn first health personnel about Sámi culture before they could either address their own needs or otherwise receive adequate health care.
In addition, many described a lack of trust in authorities and authorities, which was an obstacle to seeking help services. This mistrust was largely linked to historical and current experiences with prejudice and discrimination in society and when dealing with public services.
Many Sámi spoke of refusing to tell about their Sámi background for fear of face prejudice. Caregiving situations where the participants held back were described their Sámi ethnicity because of a feeling of being treated less favourably.
In the study by Blix (2022) from Norway, previous discrimination and stigmatization was for many a barrier to seeking health and care services. In addition, many relatives encountered little or no interest from health personnel in adapting "Sámi perspectives" in meetings with elderly Sámi. Many relatives expressed concern that elderly Sámi do not receive services that are sufficiently culturally adapted.
In the studies of Sundvall (2023), and Mienna (2021), both from Sweden, several informants highlighted how they had been exposed to medical abuse, and they experienced an almost non-existent knowledge of Sámi in Swedish society, including in health and care services. Some of the informants particularly highlighted challenges that arose in encounters with physical and mental health services, where those who were Sámi had to talk about their own culture or the Sámi way of thinking and acting at the same time as they sought help or were being treated.
Mehus (2019) from Norway found in his study that there were very limited Sámi-speaking health personnel, there was a lack of use of interpreters between non-Sámi-speaking health personnel and Sámi patients, there were no medical tests available in Sámi language and written information materials were rarely available in Sámi languages, which may contribute to weakening patient safety for Sámi patients.
Many of the informants in the study spoke of feelings of being disconnected from their own Sámi background, discriminated against, marginalized and powerless in the face of Norwegian health and care services.
Internet/social media/media
Among the 32 included studies, there were few studies that investigated the occurrence, experiences with or consequences of harassment and discrimination on the internet, media and social media. Five studies, four from Norway and one from Sweden, have findings that touch on this topic.
Three studies mapped the extent of harassment online, while three studies (one study investigated both extent and experiences of harassment online) explored the experiences related to the same harassment or unwanted media coverage online. Meanwhile, interest in this phenomenon appears to be increasing. This also applies in several of the more recently published studies in this quick overview.
In the studies by Hansen (2016,2017) (SÁMINOR-2 sample), they examined the occurrence of discrimination on the internet (digital bullying). Sámi people reported a significantly higher incidence of self-perceived digital discrimination than non-Sámi people. Digital discrimination was most frequently reported among the youngest Sámi respondents (18–29 years). More than one in five Sámi young people with a strong Sámi connection in the age group 18–29 years reported having experienced discrimination on the internet. Among those who did not say more, there were no gender differences, while Sámi women reported digital discrimination more often than Sámi men, regardless of age.
In the study by Hansen (2021), the Sámi youth and young adults answered a questionnaire which, among other things, measured harassment on the internet. The study found that most of the respondents had experienced online harassment because of their Sámi background once or a few times a year, with a slightly higher average score for the boys (2.60 N=41; 95% CI: 2.39-2, 81) than for the girls (2.36 N=161, 95% CI: 2.26-2.47) (scale from 1-5).
In the interview part of the study by Hansen (2021), they found that where many people previously had to put up with a lot of traditional ethnic bullying face to face, much of the bullying today also takes place on social media. Sámi hate on social media can be directed at individuals or families, but much of the Sámi hate is more often directed more generally at the Sámi as a people group. One of the informants who said something about harassment online pointed out that harassment that happens face-to-face is easier to deal with emotionally than harassment that happens online.
In the study by Møllersen (2023) from Norway, where they investigated health-related living and working conditions among reindeer herders, 99% of the survey respondents answered that they were worried about the publicity reindeer herding received in the media, and 79% of these reported that the media coverage had been directly burdensome for them.
Of the 13 cross-sectional studies and three multi-method studies (quantitative part), there were four studies whose purpose was to investigate who perpetrates harassment and discrimination against Sámi. All were from Norway. Of the 16 qualitative studies and three multi-method studies (qualitative part), findings emerged in two of the studies that said something about who perpetrates incitement and discrimination against the Sámi.
In the study by Eriksen (2015) from Norway, they found that the majority of those who reported being exposed to violence (regardless of type) knew the perpetrator. Only one in five reported that the perpetrator was an unknown person.
In the studies by Hansen (2016, 2017), they found that Sámi with a strong Sámi connection and self-reported 'Sáminess' (the study's own term) experience discrimination to a far greater extent from fellow pupils/students, from teachers/other staff at the school, from the majority population, from unknown persons and from other Sámi compared to the rest of the population. In addition, many Sámi reported violations from public employees and work colleagues.
In the study by Melbøe (2016) from Norway, they included young people with disabilities and examined their experience of bullying at school. In the study, they included the students disabled people experience bullying from both Norwegian and Sámi fellow pupils.
In this systematic quick overview, we did not assess the studies' risk of systematic biases or methodological limitations and we did not assess the confidence in the documentation of synthesized results. Consequently, we are reticent to assess the significance of the results for practice. Based on the data obtained, what the authors of the included studies write and knowledge gaps, we can nevertheless highlight some points for future planned work on harassment and discrimination against the Sámi:
There is a need to increase knowledge about the Sámi, their history, the significance and consequences of Norwegianization for the Sámi and about Sámi culture nationally, regionally and locally.
By increasing knowledge about the Sámi, it will be possible to break down old and inherited ideas about the Sámi that have shaped stereotypes and prejudices that still exist today. The included studies found that much of the discrimination against the Sámi is committed in the local environment of the victim, at school, at the workplace, on public transport and outside the public space.
This indicates that it is probably necessary to work on measures at the local and regional level to combat harassment and discrimination that Sámi people encounter in their everyday lives. In the research literature, we find that Sámi who belong to several ethnicities and minorities, Sámi with functional impairments and reindeer herders appear to be particularly vulnerable to harassment and discrimination. These groups will probably need additional safeguards when measures to combat harassment and discrimination are to be implemented.
The mapping of measures that have been intended to reduce or prevent harassment and discrimination against the Sámi shows that since 2014 and until today, it has been presented many measures in action plans, in strategy documents, in (public) reports and in primary research. As shown earlier in this quick overview, it is very limited with measures that have been initiated, and consequently evaluated.
There is thus very limited availability with knowledge of what are effective or efficient measures to reduce and prevent harassment and discrimination against the Sámi. It does not appear in most of the action documents plans for implementation, or information about who is responsible for following up proposed measures. We believe that future action plans must, to a greater extent, ensure that measures are initiated, and ensure that a follow-up evaluation of these takes place. In the future, those who propose measures must facilitate evaluations with methods that are suitable for investigation the effectiveness of the measures. This is needed to support decisions and to be able to work according to the principles of knowledge-based practice.
Against the background of the lack of knowledge about effective measures to combat harassment and discrimination against the Sámi, it may also be appropriate to carry out a systematic thematic overview that includes measures to combat racism, discrimination and the like against indigenous peoples in other parts of the world, and examine the impact of these.
Based on: Folkehelseinstituttet
The North Observer
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