A land of peace

So far, violence has been nearly non-existent in Sweden for Joanna Tsai. Now, she is thinking about migrating to the land of peace and plenty.

I’ve walked around Lund and other Swedish cities late at night (even Malmo, which has the reputation of being dangerous) and have never felt unsafe.

Even in Lund, a university town where students often get trashed, one is “lucky” to see the slightly aggressive posturing of two guys at a club or on the street.  This is strange but great to me since I come from a country where many violent crimes are committed daily.

I realized just how little violence I see in Sweden one night after a house party in Södra Sandby, a quiet suburb outside of Lund.

I and my friend, a big guy, were waiting at the quiet bus station when a grey, 4-seat, convertible drove up and a teenage guy hopped out and started harassing my friend.

It looked like a strong kick could shatter this guy’s legs (not smart to wear tight pants if you get into fights) so I was surprised that my friend put up with it (he later said the odds were bad since there were three guys in the car).

The guy said something about my friend’s mother (how original) and threw his (plastic?) beer bottle at my friend and got back in the car.

My reaction was indignant and then very angry.  If that guy did that to the wrong person in the US, he would’ve gotten shot or beaten to death.

I don’t think right now that he deserved that but I did then.  Generally, it feels bad to be taken advantage of in any way whether you’re a man or woman (eg. getting pick-pocketed or physically or psychologically abused), but in America it’s a much different kind of confrontation because the thieves are much more direct.

I think this is because, though they point a gun in your face, you hypothetically have the chance to fight back.

Robbery at gunpoint is something that has happened to some of my friends in the US in broad daylight and in good neighborhoods.  Maybe it’s something about the way Americans communicate…

This past week while travelling outside of Sweden I have been victimized by, not serious but still disturbing, acts:

1. A man masturbated at me and my friend in a park in broad daylight.
2. A guy grabbed my ass TWICE on the ferry from Sweden to Finland even though I grabbed his arm and yelled at him the first time.  I hoped he wasn’t Swedish so I could retain my almost perfect (nothing is perfect) image of Sweden and its people.

Those boats should have garbage compactors for all the trash.  These incidences weren’t so bad but they completely shocked me, as I’ve gotten used to life in Sweden where any kind of violence, big or small, doesn’t typically happen to men OR women.

So, today’s life lesson is that I want to immigrate to Sweden or buy a gun.