Some In Greenland Grow Tired Of Danish Colonialism

Greenlanders are voicing renewed anger at Denmark’s colonial legacy, pointing to decades of forced contraception, child removals, and entrenched economic neglect that continue to shape life on the Arctic island — and to fuel calls for full independence.

In the capital, residents describe a society still grappling with trauma rooted in policies imposed from Copenhagen. One of them, Amarok Petersen, learned at age 27 why she had never been able to conceive. During treatment for severe uterine problems, doctors discovered an intrauterine device implanted without her knowledge when she was just 13 — part of a Danish population-control campaign that targeted thousands of Greenlandic girls and women from the 1960s through the 1990s. ---More...

Greenlander Amarok Petersen, who bravely spoke out in my story on the atrocity of Danish colonizers sterilizing without her knowledge, sings an Inuit song for peace as people throw death threats and deny her experience because it’s inconvenient for their narrative.

Her strength… pic.twitter.com/azsRUp6hOW

— Caitlin Doornbos (@CaitlinDoornbos)January 17, 2026

Greenlander Amarok Petersen, who bravely spoke out in my story on the atrocity of Danish colonizers sterilizing without her knowledge, sings an Inuit song for peace as people throw death threats and deny her experience because it’s inconvenient for their narrative.

Her strength is awe-inspiring.