Famously neutral Sweden is in the spotlight today after a curious social experiment via Twitter turned into a slow-moving train wreck.
For months, the official Twitter handle of Sweden, appropriately named @Sweden, has been manned by a different Swedish citizen each week. As The New York Times recently reported, the idea is that everyday Swedes will have a hand in representing the many voices that make up the country. Unfortunately for Sweden, though, just as the Times article went to print, this week’s voice fired off a string of insensitive and offensive remarks about Jews.
This week’s @Sweden tweeter, Sonja Abraham, a 27-year-old self-described “holy mother of two,” captured the attention of the world when she decided to use her platform to ponder what makes Jews different, how people can even identify Jews, and why people “hate Jews so much,” all in broken English.
We knew we were in for a bizarre ride after the first tweet this morning in which Sonja naively stated that you can not determine whether someone is Jewish unless you see their penis. “And even if you do, you can’t be sure!?,” she added.
It wasn’t long before Swedes and others around the world fired back at Sonja over her remarks. She appeared baffled by the backlash, tweeting that she didn’t understand what it was she said that was so offensive.
In her short autobiography included on the website that features the citizens chosen to tweet for @Sweden, Sonja didn’t get too philosophical, but did mention one thing she is looking forward to:
“I dont know what I want to do in the furure [sic]. Thinking about the future is not my speciality [sic], apparently. But I’m excited to know if we all die the 21st of December.”
Sweden, it’s time to take back the Twitter. 
