{"id":34919,"date":"2026-03-07T16:36:52","date_gmt":"2026-03-07T16:36:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/34919\/"},"modified":"2026-03-07T16:36:52","modified_gmt":"2026-03-07T16:36:52","slug":"greenland-is-a-global-model-for-indigenous-self-governance-trumps-demands-for-the-island-threaten-that","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/34919\/","title":{"rendered":"Greenland is a global model for Indigenous self-governance. Trump\u2019s demands for the island threaten that."},"content":{"rendered":"

Aqqaluk Lynge was 19 years old when an American B-52 bomber carrying four thermonuclear weapons as well as conventional bombs crashed off the northwest coast of Greenland, the island where Lynge was born and raised. That was January 1968, and the plane was headed to Thule Air Force Base, a U.S. military installation in Greenland, now known as Pituffik Space Base. When the plane hit the Arctic waters, the conventional bombs detonated but the nuclear weapons did not.<\/p>\n

Six American military personnel parachuted from the plane before it crashed, shivering on the frozen ground before Inuit dog sled teams found them and saved their lives. One service member trapped on floating ice 6 miles from Thule survived the negative 21-degree Fahrenheit weather by wrapping himself in his parachute.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now, aged 78, Lynge wonders if the United States remembers that Inuit dogsleds saved American lives. Or the fact that Greenlanders fought for the U.S. in Afghanistan as enlisted members of the Danish military, dying at the second-highest rate of any country besides the U.S. That U.S. Air Force base is still operational<\/a> and 150 American military personnel are currently stationed there. \u201cWhy should a friend for so many years be treated like this?\u201d Lynge said. \u201cWe need support from democratic-minded people in the United States.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"An<\/p>\n

\n An Inuit dog team stands on frozen Baffin Bay near site of crash of a U.S. B52 nuclear bomber on January 21, 1968.
\n Bettmann via Getty Images\n <\/p>\n

\"American<\/p>\n

\n American military survivors of a B52 crash in Greenland smile for a photo in 1968.
\n Keystone-France \/ Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images\n <\/p>\n

President Donald Trump has demanded that the United States acquire Greenland and said that control of the island is necessary for national and international security. He has threatened European allies with tariffs and even hinted at seizing Greenland by force. On Wednesday, Trump backtracked on both threats<\/a> and said he\u2019d reached a \u201cframework of a future deal <\/a>with respect to Greenland\u201d without giving any details; however Trump\u2019s behavior over the island has already undermined America\u2019s relationship with Europe by threatening longstanding alliances.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Less publicized is how Trump\u2019s threats have refocused attention on the United States\u2019 relationship and history with Indigenous peoples: Greenland is 90 percent Inuit and has maintained its traditions, language, knowledge, and land despite centuries of colonial rule, and is viewed as a model of Indigenous self-determination and sovereignty.<\/p>\n

Lynge, who is Inuit, is part of that history. He co-founded<\/a> the Inuit Ataqatigiit, a democratic socialist party in Greenland that advocates for independence. He helped lead the Inuit Circumpolar Council, an organization that represents Indigenous peoples in the Arctic. And he\u2019s a former member of the Greenlandic Parliament, as well as the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which helps advise the U.N. Economic and Social Council on issues related to Indigenous peoples.<\/p>\n

Greenland is still part of the Kingdom of Denmark, a colonial relationship that\u2019s existed since the 18th century, but thanks to the work of people like Lynge, the island has achieved a level of political independence that many Indigenous peoples aspire to. \u201cThe extensive self-governance of Greenland is an inspiring example of the implementation of Indigenous self-determination for many Indigenous Peoples worldwide,\u201d said the United Nations special rapporteur on the rights of Indigenous peoples, Jos\u00e9 Francisco Cal\u00ed Tzay, in 2023.<\/p>\n

\"AqqalukAqqaluk Lynge, left, listens during a 2009 press conference on the Inuit Circumpolar Council on the effects of climate change.
\n Casper Christoffersen \/ AFP via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Yet despite the still-strong presence of Inuit peoples in Greenland, Stefan Aune, a historian and the author of the book Indian Wars Everywhere<\/a>, said he\u2019s been struck by how much Trump\u2019s threats have been framed as conflict between the U.S. and Denmark or the U.S. and European countries, ignoring the presence of Indigenous peoples. \u201cThis really kind of evokes the way the history of North America often gets narrated, which is a kind of imperial squabble between the British, the French, and the Spanish, and then later the United States, despite the fact that there\u2019s all these different Native nations that play a really equally important role in the war, the politics, the economics, and the diplomacy on the continent,\u201d Aune said. \u201cSo there\u2019s definitely a parallel there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Aune is among many experts who see Trump\u2019s policies and rhetoric as echoes of historical entitlement to Native land reframed as a defensive struggle against Indigenous nations or other threats. \u201cThe iconic image of this is the surrounded wagon train, which you can see in all kinds of art, paintings, and then later movies and television and video games,\u201d Aune said. \u201cSettler colonialism consistently gets reframed as a defensive struggle rather than an invasion.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read Next<\/p>\n

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\"a<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

The Miccosukee Tribe blocked Alligator Alcatraz. Then Trump blocked a bill to return their land.<\/a><\/p>\n

Peter Mancall, a historian and author of the book Contested Continent<\/a>, said he was struck by how quickly Trump pivoted from the security reasons to capture Venezuela\u2019s president to his plans to sell 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil. \u201cThe rapid pivot from the pretext of the invasion to the extraction of resources [in Venezuela] was quicker than anything I had seen in the early American period,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve seen this before, and it has often had catastrophic consequences for Indigenous peoples as well as deleterious impacts on various environments.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Jonathan Kamakawiwo\u02bbole Osorio, the dean of Hawai\u02bbinui\u0101kea School of Hawaiian Knowledge at the University of Hawai\u02bbi, sees parallels to the U.S. overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom, which he wrote about in his book Dismembering L\u0101hui.<\/a> In the late 1800s, the U.S. was motivated to annex Hawai\u2019i in order to cement economic control over the islands\u2019 sugar plantations and to establish military control over Pearl Harbor.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact that the president of the United States no longer feels that it\u2019s necessary to justify imperialism in any other way except that \u2018We need it\u2019 is deeply revealing and clarifying,\u201d Osorio said. \u201cWhen you remove all of the pretext and you realize that all this has ever been about has been the acquisition of opportunities and other peoples and other peoples\u2019 countries \u2026 it\u2019s never been any different.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Greenland is three times the size of Texas and home to about 56,000 people. The island has 39 of the 50 minerals that the U.S. considers to be critical for military technology and the U.S. economy, many of which are used for clean energy technology like electric vehicle batteries. Investors are hoping that melting ice caps due to climate change will make it easier for companies to mine minerals like gallium, which can be used to create computer chips<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"AA banner says \u201cDecolonize Don\u2019t Recolonize,\u201d seen during a demonstration against the Trump administration in Copenhagen in 2025.
Kristian Tuxen Ladegaard Berg \/ SOPA Images \/ LightRocket via Getty Images<\/p>\n

But Paul Bierman, a geoscientist who has studied ice sheets in Greenland, is skeptical. He said melting permafrost has led to cratering on U.S. Air Force runways and thinks mining infrastructure would face similar challenges. \u201cIf you\u2019ve ever stood next to a melting glacier, you\u2019re not putting a mine there. The ice is literally melting below your feet. It\u2019s crumbling, it\u2019s collapsing,\u201d he said. \u201cThe idea that we\u2019re going to walk in and in a year, start up mines and have minerals coming out and be rich, it\u2019s a complete and utter fantasy. It doesn\u2019t match the reality of being on the ground.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

That hasn\u2019t stopped wealthy investors from yearning to profit from Greenland, from billionaire Ronald Lauder<\/a> to Peter Thiel.<\/a> Bierman said the greater risk to humanity is allowing climate change \u2014\u00a0which Trump has called a hoax \u2014 to continue to melt ice caps and inundate low-lying cities like Jakarta, eventually dislocating an anticipated half a billion people. \u201cCompared to the value of strategic minerals in Greenland, it\u2019s orders of magnitude more in damages from letting the ice melt,\u201d said Bierman, who wrote a book on Greenland called When The Ice Is Gone<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Denmark has recognized Greenland as self-governing with a right to its own mineral resources, and Greenlanders have been extremely clear about their desire to maintain their sovereignty<\/a>, as well as their affiliation with Denmark. \u201cIt is our country,\u201d Lynge said. \u201cNo one can take it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since World War II, Greenland has been a close military ally of the U.S., hosting not just Pituffik Space Base \u2014\u00a0which displaced an Inuit village \u2014 but also more than 20 American military bases that were eventually abandoned<\/a>. Treaties dating back to 1941 give the U.S. enormous sway over what its military can do on the island and prevents other militaries from operating there, even though Trump has repeatedly claimed that Russia and China are doing so.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201c[According to an] agreement from 1951<\/a>, the United States is free to do what they want, and from 2014, they can do that by talking to us and the Danes,\u201d said Lynge from Greenland. \u201cThe U.S. is the only military presence here in Greenland, so what\u2019s the problem?\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Greenland residents and political leaders have publicly rejected suggestions by U.S. President Donald Trump that the Arctic island could become part of the United States. Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark, has emphasized that its future will be decided by its own people, with officials stating that the island is not for sale and does not wish to become American.
\n Lokman Vural Elibol \/ Anadolu via Getty Images<\/p>\n

After two centuries of colonial rule, in the 1960s, Denmark began taking steps to limit Inuit population growth by inserting intrauterine devices in about 4,500 women, including girls as young as 12 years old. The Danish government apologized last year and agreed to compensate<\/a> the women who sued, arguing the government violated their human rights. The population limitation process was extremely effective, dropping birth rates substantially among Indigenous families and causing permanent infertility among some women. Denmark also has a decades-long history of removing Inuit children from their homes against their parents\u2019 will, with research as recent as 2022 showing that Inuit children are seven times more likely to be removed from their parents\u2019 homes than Danish children. In 2023, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples issued a report on the status of Greenland that said Denmark needs to implement many reforms to fully respect Indigenous rights, including embracing a reconciliation process to address historical trauma.<\/p>\n

Despite these traumas, and perhaps motivated by them, Greenland\u2019s independence movement has gained ground in recent decades, securing several major wins. In 1979, more than 70 percent of Greenland\u2019s mostly Inuit residents voted in favor of more independence from Denmark. The referendum made the island a \u201cconstituent country\u201d of the Kingdom of Denmark, rather than just a colony, and gave Greenlanders control over domestic policies such as their education, environment, health, and fisheries. The law also established the Greenlandic Parliament.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"ProtestersProtesters wave Greenland flags during a demonstration with the slogans \u201chands off Greenland\u201d and \u201cGreenland for Greenlanders\u201d at City Hall Square in Copenhagen, Denmark, on January 17, 2026.
Kristian Tuxen Ladegaard Berg \/ NurPhoto via Getty Images<\/p>\n

In 2008, more than three-fourths of Greenlanders again voted in favor of self-governance, expanding their control over the police and courts and giving Greenland more of a say over foreign policy. The law also made Kalaallisut, an Inuit language of Greenland, the official language of the country, and restored Greenland\u2019s control over its mineral and oil revenue, with provisions for remitting some funding to Denmark. It also established a pathway to full independence, without a specific timeline, as the move would require support from both Greenland and Denmark.<\/p>\n

Political leaders in Greenland have continued to explore the possibility of full independence, drafting a potential constitution as recently as 2023, and last year, polls showed that most people in Greenland wanted independence from Denmark, although voters differed on how and when it should happen. The vast majority, 85 percent,<\/a> oppose any type of union with the U.S.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThey serve as a model for how to practice self-governance,\u201d said Gunn-Britt Retter, the head of the Arctic and environmental unit of the Saami Council, which represents Indigenous Saami people in Europe. The council has come out in support of Greenland against Trump\u2019s threats, and has been a longtime ally of theirs in the fight for climate action and Indigenous rights internationally. She added that the idea of the U.S. buying Greenland from Denmark makes no sense. \u201cYou can\u2019t buy something that is stolen.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

To Lynge, Trump\u2019s threats are not only misinformed, but also threaten the political autonomy that he has spent his lifetime building. And he doesn\u2019t think Greenlanders are the only people at risk.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are in the middle of a situation in the world where small nations like us would be crushed if we don\u2019t do anything,\u201d Lynge said. \u201cIf the world allows what is happening right now, it will continue and destroy the world order as we know it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Aqqaluk Lynge was 19 years old when an American B-52 bomber carrying four thermonuclear weapons as well as…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34920,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5],"tags":[57,20334,20333,20335],"class_list":["post-34919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-greenland","tag-greenland","tag-longform","tag-solutions","tag-yahoo"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@dk\/116188875673885365","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34919","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34919"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34919\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34920"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/dk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}