nordstjernan The Swedish Newspaper of America
Published by Swedish News. Volume 143 No. 20, November 30, 2015. Price per copy $2.50
Page 23-38
Skansen’s annual “Julmarknad” (Christmas market)—laden with crafts and design, good food, sweets and mulled wine—opens on November 28. “Första Advent” this year falls on November 29: The first weekend of Advent is family time at the open air museum in Stockholm.
Photo: Marie Andersson
This Week, Page 18
Sweden begins border control
Page 9
by Lisa Mikulski lisa.mikulski@nordstjernan.com
The Swedish Migration Board sounded the alarm on Nov. 11 that the steadily increasing pressure on the authority has finally reached critical levels and that Migrationsverket is now unable to fulfill its responsibilities. “We can no longer guarantee shelter,” Mikael Hvinlund, Migrationsverket, said at Wednesday’s press conference. “We have since September registered about 80,000 asylum seekers. That is as many as we registered during the entire year of 2014. We have a situation where people are forced to sleep in tents outside our offices, and are sleeping within our reception center. We have a situation where Migrationsverket is no longer able to meet their mission which is to provide shelter to the applicants,” said Hvinlund.
Continued on page 3
Scandinavians of all ages at Hostfest.
Sweden, Page 2, 3
Swedes may have a hard winter ahead / The Royal Court puts rumors at bay about residences for refugees / The U.S. embassy in Stockholm has been without an ambassador since July / Sweden prepares to help France.
Perspectives, Page 5 No, you won’t see barbed wire in Sweden or Europe any time soon, if ever, but the Swedish government has confirmed that Sweden has introduced temporary border control.
The holiday season 2015
... is upon us, and it seems candlelight is more appropriate than ever as we remember many who have lost their lives, but also as we hope for peace and celebrate the season of Advent. In Christian communities in Sweden, the U.S. and around the world, Advent is a time with special traditions many people hold dear – often just as special in secular settings. And it all starts with light. Swedes welcome the light of candles as their northern December days gets shorter and shorter, and each Sunday before Christmas as they shine more light, and light more candles in their homes. If you don’t already observe some of these traditions, you’ll likely want to after reading about all the holiday festivals of this issue. / Pages 10-13
Startling data shows Gothenburg is a hotbed for Islamic extremist group recruitment.
Feature, Page 16, 17, 39
Making - and drinking - glögg of all sorts is an important part of the holiday celebration.
Dashboard, Page 21 It is hoped that the people who most need to see this sign will do so — and heed its message. Page 11