Thousands march in Greenland to oppose Trump’s threats
Thousands of Greenlanders carefully walked across snow and ice to take a stand against US President Donald Trump.
They displayed signs of protest, waved their national flags, and chanted “Greenland is not for sale” in support of their self-government in the face of the growing threat of American rule.
As they completed their journey from the small urban center of Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, to the US Consulate, news came: From his home in Florida, Trump announced that, starting in February, he would impose a 10 percent import duty on goods from eight European countries that oppose US control of Greenland.
“I thought this day couldn’t get any worse, but it did,” Malik Dollerup-Scheibel said after The Associated Press told him about Trump’s announcement.
“This shows that he no longer has any remorse towards any human being.”
Trump has long said he thinks the United States should own the strategically located and mineral-rich island as a self-governing territory of Greenland.
Trump intensified his calls a day after the military operation to oust former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in early January.
Dollerup-Scheibel, a 21-year-old Greenlander, and Greenlandic Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen were among what others described as the island’s largest protest, drawing almost a quarter of Nuuk’s population.
Others held rallies and solidarity marches in Danish territories, including Copenhagen, and in the capital of Canada’s northernmost Inuit-run territory of Nunavut.
“This is important for the whole world,” Danish protester Elise Riechie said while holding Danish and Greenlandic flags in Copenhagen. “There are many small countries. None of them are for sale.”
In Nuuk, Greenlanders of all ages listened to traditional songs as they walked to the consulate. Marie Pedersen, a 47-year-old from Greenland, said it was important to bring her children to the rally “to show them that they are allowed to speak.”
“We want to keep our own country, our own culture and our family safe,” he said.
Nine-year-old daughter Alaska created her own “Greenland is not for sale” sign. The girl said her teachers took up the controversy and taught them about NATO at school.
“They tell us how to stand up when you’re being bullied by another country,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tom Olsen, a police officer in Nuuk, said Saturday’s protest was the biggest he had ever seen there.
“I hope this can show him that we are together in Europe,” he said. “We won’t go down without a fight.”
Tillie Martinussen, a former member of Greenland’s parliament, said she hoped the Trump administration would “give up on this crazy idea.”
“They started by introducing themselves as our friends and allies, saying they wanted to make Greenland better for us than the Danes had,” he said, as others chanted in the background. “And now they’re openly threatening us.”
He added that NATO and the effort to preserve Greenland’s autonomy are more important than facing tariffs, but did not rule out the possible economic impact.
“This is a struggle for freedom,” he said. “This is for NATO, for everything the Western hemisphere has fought for since World War II.”
But when the AP asked Louise Lennert Olsen what she would say to Trump, the 40-year-old nurse from Greenland said she wanted to send a message to the American people instead.
“I would really like them to support our desire for Greenland to be like it is now,” he said while walking in Nuuk. “I hope they stand up to their own president. Because I can’t believe they just stood by and watched and did nothing.”
