Peace, Love, and Lutefisk: Adventures i Norge

On Tuesday we officially started the revolution with a protest outside of the Danish Consulate.

The story begins in Copenhagen with the Youth House, or Ungdomshuset. The Youth House was a building that was a center for political activists, leftists, and anarchists. The building was occupied for over 25 years by these squatters but ventually, the building was sold by the municipality to a radical Christian sect called "Faderhuset." They said that they had a vision from God that they should tear down the house, so one week ago, the Danish government gave in to pressure from Faderhuset and sent in police forces in a military-like operation to remove the residents of the Youth House. Helicopters, cranes, tear gas, riot gear, and one-third of Denmark's police were used in the operation. The action sparked violent riots in Copenhagen and led to massive street protests in many other places around the world...including Tromsø! (Read the whole story here)

My housemate Stian helped organize a peaceful protest here in Tromsø against the disproportionate response of the Danish state as well as the commercialization of public spaces. About 25 people gathered outside of the Danish Consulate, and we presented them with a statement saying that we were opposed to their actions and that we were in solidarity with the causes the youth were fighting for, even if we were against their means. Stian read a speech and together we hopped in solidarity with Copenhagen saying "Anyone who is not jumping is in support of Faderhuset." All of this excitement attracted radio and tv attention as well as police attention. There were 12 policemen parked and standing about 50 meters from the Danish Consulate (about one policeman for every two people), and frighteningly enough one of Stian's co-organizers received a call from the police only hours after sending the first e-mail talking about organizing a protest. Are they watching us?! Fortunately, everything was peaceful and even though the police didn't sign our letter for the Danes, they didn't intervene either. (You can watch the news clip of the event and even see me jumping here.)

It was great though to be active politically. It made me realize the benefits of living in a smaller country like Norway or most European countries. There is more of a feeling that you can make a difference or stand up to decisions by the government whereas in the US it often feels like you are so small in the big scheme of things that you can't make a difference...but you can! A little organization and hopping can go a long ways. Maybe the US has a culture that promotes complacency politically, but hopefully the hopping can show that acting in solidarity is one important way to make a statement. It might not change the world, but it sends an important signal.

Viva la revolucion.