DF candidate apologises after posting racist picture

Karin Fink Eriksen said that she never meant to upload the picture, arguing that she was trying to share an article by someone else, an article that she doesn’t recall

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Nov 15, 2013

Karin Fink Eriksen, a DF candidate in the local elections next week, has apologised for uploading a picture on her Facebook page on Wednesday that depicted Muslims as paedophiles, rapists and terrorists.

Eriksen, who is running for a spot on the Aarhus City Council, has since removed the picture and explained that she never meant to upload it in the first place. She argued that she was trying to share an article by social worker Hara Dvinge, although she says she doesn't recall what the article – which she was so eager to share with her friends – was about.

“The image that Hara Dvinge used in her article was attached and that was not my intention,” Eriksen told Jyllands-Posten newspaper. “I have several Muslim friends and am by no means a racist. I have nothing against them, just those who do not behave properly.”

Under the microscope
Along with the image, Eriksen included the comment: “Unfortunately yes, get these creeps out.”

“That comment is, of course, not appropriate. But sometimes things are said during heated discussions and I am the first to apologise for it,” Eriksen said. “That’s why I removed it again. I’m not trying to insult anyone.”

Despite admitting to her wrongdoing, Eriksen said that Tuesday's local election has put politicians under the microscope and small issues are quickly escalated.

“It is obvious that everyone is looking for a hair in the soup during an election and opponents hunt for the smallest of issues,” Eriksen said.

Unfortunate timing
Whether DF chooses to remove Eriksen as a candidate with just five days to the elections remains to be seen. But for Jaleh Tavakoli, a Copenhagen City Council member, the choice should be obvious.

“Can DF accept that Karin Fink Eriksen apparently believes that Muslims are either terrorists, rapists or paedophiles? I hope not, of course,” Tavakoli wrote in her Jyllands-Posten column.

It’s not the first time that a DFer has landed in hot water for their Facebook choices. In July, Tina Petersen, a former MP for Dansk Folkeparti (DF) and current Svendborg City Council member, was indicted for racism for a photo on her Facebook page in April 2012 that compared Muslims to rubbish.