Greenland Women Sue Denmark Over Forced Contraception

Facts

• A group of women from Greenland who claim to have been the victims of a birth control program run by Greenland's former colonial ruler in the 1960s filed a lawsuit against Denmark on Monday.¹
• Over 140 women are alleging they were compelled to undergo a procedure involving the insertion of an intrauterine device (IUD) to decrease the number of births in the area. Every participant is requesting 300K Danish crowns ($43K) as compensation.²
• In 2022, Danish broadcaster DR discovered records indicating that between 1966 and 1970, 4.5K procedures were completed on members of the Inuit community as young as age 13 and women without their consent and sometimes without their knowledge.³
• The Danish government launched a commission in 2022 to uncover the campaign's details and is scheduled to release its findings in 2025. The initiator of the claim, Naja Lyberth, said, “We don’t want to wait for the results of the enquiry.'⁴
• IUDs are typically implanted for ten years before they can cause complications in a patient. Lyberth, who experienced severe complications, posted her struggles online and received responses from over 200 women with similar experiences.⁵
• In 2020, Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen issued an official apology to the families of 22 Greenland children who were removed from their homes during a social experiment meant to assimilate the children and return them home as model citizens in the 1950s.³

Sources: ¹Reuters, ²Barron's, ³Sky News, ⁴CBS and ⁵France 24.

Narratives

• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by OSU. The brutal colonization of another nation or territory has devastating and long-lasting impacts. The lasting impacts include discrimination against indigenous peoples, income and wealth gaps, and poor economic and governing infrastructure. This case is another stark reminder of the social consequences of colonization and Denmark's reckless policies.
• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by Reuters. While proceeding with caution, European governments have come to the table to discuss reparations for formerly colonized nations across the globe. The harm cannot be undone, but accountability will go a long way toward bridging strained relationships and restoring wrongs. Governments like Denmark are working in good faith to address the legacy of colonial policies.

Predictions