While riding the bus, I was subjected to racist taunts by a group of four teenagers. One of them, a girl visible in the photo, made a slanted-eye gesture at me. They continued to laugh and called me derogatory names like "stupid" and "retarded." This girl even invaded my personal space, shouting loudly in my face—all captured on video. My training in Krav Maga led me to instinctively push her away to maintain a safe distance.
When they got angrier about me recording the incident, I explained that it was to protect myself and that it started when the girl made the slanted-eye gestures. However, I never shouted nor used any curse words like they did. They behaved very badly from the moment they entered the bus, extending their legs with their shoes on the chair in front of them, making the chair dirty, making 'suck my dick' gestures, and throwing trash on the ground.
My Finnish husband and I filed a police report, assured that recording their behavior was appropriate. Within 2 day of the incident:
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We made a police report and went to the police station in person.
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We were contacted privately by a few people who know these teenagers personally. Apparently, they are known to be "violent and mean and have already bullied others" before.
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We found out all of their names:
Mariia Vasileva (Parent: Zlata Vasileva)
Otto Rafik
Sara Inga Alexandra Halonen
Kasper -
We found the school (Rieskalähteen yläkoulu) where one of them goes and contacted the school.
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I spoke to a journalist from Helsingin Sanomat about this experience.
Setting the Record Straight: Correcting Helsingin Sanomat's Misrepresentations
I would like to correct some information, as Helsingin Sanomat did not provide accurate details despite our multiple notifications. I have been living abroad since I was 21, and I'm turning 33 this year. We moved from Tokyo in January, where we had lived for over eight years. If it matters, I am originally from the Philippines. They also emphasized that I come from a Southeast Asian country, despite the fact that I haven’t lived there for more than 10 years.
I also want to clarify that I'm not 'upset' that other Finnish adults didn't intervene when the incident occurred. The term I used was 'disappointed,' which I think HS translated too strongly into Finnish. I can speak for myself, though it would have been nice if others had stood up for me. Unfortunately, no one said anything to them when they were grouping up behind me. I look very young for my age; maybe this is one reason they don’t think I deserve even a polite gesture.
I had an experience on a bus where an Finnish elderly woman wanted to get off but couldn’t. She was very slow and couldn’t speak well. I had to shout twice to the driver from the back because nobody else tried to help. Only then did others start to assist.
I am grateful to those who reached out to me with useful information or kind words. I won’t stop if there is more I can do. I’m quite glad it happened to me and not to someone incapable of fighting back. These teenagers/types of people are only "uncowardly" because they outnumber their target.
Even with all this information, we still haven’t spoken to their parents. If you can help us connect with them, we would be grateful.
Update
We received a police report stating that Sara Inga Alexandra Halonen personally went to the police station, while Mariia Vasileva was only spoken to by her guardian at home and did not visit the police station. We have also inquired about the situation regarding Otto Rafik, one of the most aggressive teenagers involved, and are still awaiting a response from the police.
