Protests in Greenland reignite debate over Denmark’s treatment of Indigenous families

By Elías Thorsson August 13, 2025
471
A woman plays a traditional Greenlandic qilaat drum during the demonstration in Nuuk. (Kim Eriksen Kleist)

Greenlandic newspaper Sermitsiaq reports that anger over the forced removal of Greenlandic children in Denmark was on display in Nuuk on Tuesday, as protesters confronted visiting Danish lawmakers. The demonstration, sparked by Høje Taastrup Municipality’s decision to take a newborn daughter from her Greenlandic mother, Ivana Nikoline Brønlund, is the latest flashpoint in a long-running dispute over how Danish authorities handle Greenlandic families — and whether those actions violate Indigenous rights.

The protest coincided with an official visit to Greenland by members of the Danish Folketing’s Greenland Committee, who are on a tour of Greenland and Canada. Several Greenlandic politicians joined the crowd outside the Inatsisartut, including Premier Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Finance Minister Múte B. Egede, Children, Youth and Families Minister Maasi Pedersen and MP Aki-Matilda Høegh-Dam.

Premier Jens-Frederik Nielsen (center) was among those who attended the demonstration. (Kim Eriksen Kleist)

The demonstration was organized by filmmaker Aka Hansen, who addressed the visiting members of the Greenland Committee directly, challenging them to justify the removal.

“How can you live with this? How can you defend a system that again and again breaks up families — often without documented evidence that it is in the child’s best interest?”

Speaking later to Sermitsiaq, Hansen linked the case to earlier protests over the controversial FKU tests used in child welfare cases.

Protesters in Nuuk hold signs calling for the protection of Greenlandic children and respect for human rights during a demonstration outside the Inatsisartut. (Kim Eriksen Kleist)

“We took to the streets and demonstrated six months ago to get the controversial FKU tests removed, and we succeeded — or so we thought. Now we can see that municipalities are still using these tests. We are up against a colonial system, and we must continue to fight for our rights. Our goal is for the children who were wrongly taken to be returned to their parents.”

MP Aaja Chemnitz (IA) has already sent questions to Denmark’s Minister for Social Affairs and Housing Sophie Hæstorp Andersen about the latest case. Sermitsiaq reports that in a similar incident, Høje Taastrup officials used the disputed FKU test and failed to involve Denmark’s VISO advisory unit, allegedly in violation of a law passed May 1. Chemnitz has questioned why Greenlandic language and culture are not being taken into account as required by law.

Minister Maasi Pedersen told protesters he has repeatedly sought a meeting with his Danish counterpart to address the forced removal of Greenlandic children in Denmark, calling it a top priority.

A demonstrator plays a traditional Greenlandic qilaat drum while addressing a crowd gathered outside the Inatsisartut in Nuuk. (Kim Eriksen Kleist)