During colonial rule, Denmark enforced assimilation policies, unofficially banning the Inuit language, forced sterilisations and removing children from their families to be placed in Danish homes. Policies which left Greenlanders bitter.
Aviaja Rakel Sanimuinaq is an Inuit Greenlander, a shaman, and a spiritual healer. She wears traditional Inuit facial tattoos and helps others reconnect with their ancestors to heal generational trauma.
“Growing up, it was natural for me to speak about the connection with the spirits,” Sanimuinaq recalls. “But my mom told me never to talk about it because it was dangerous. I never understood why, because I hadn’t experienced the suppression my ancestors had.”
Today, she is part of a growing movement of Greenlanders reclaiming their Inuit heritage and spirituality.
Explaining the significance of her tattoos, she says, “There are two lines at a time, which means our world and the spirit world. And the distance between those two lines is what we do not know.”
Although approximately 90% of Greenlanders identify as Inuit, most belong to the Lutheran Church, a faith introduced by Danish missionaries more than 300 years ago.
“The sacredness of Christianity is still sacred in my eyes, but so is Buddhism. So is Hinduism, and so is my work. And that’s where I stand on this—that the arising of our culture and us as a people is also to get the equality within our culture, to acknowledge that our culture is legit,” says Sanimuinaq.
In recent years, there has been a growing rejection of the colonial legacy left by European missionaries, who suppressed Inuit traditions by labelling them as pagan.
“The generations that you see in here today are the generations that actually believe that we can heal,” she says.
Another ‘charm offensive’ from the USA
Greenland was a Danish colony until 1953, when it became a province. In 1979, it was granted home rule, and 30 years later, it became a self-governing entity. However, Denmark still controls the island’s foreign and defence affairs.
US President Donald Trump’s recent statement attracted attention to the island when he said he would not rule out the use of military force to seize control of Greenland, as he declared US control of both to be vital to American national security.
Meanwhile, Usha Vance, wife of US Vice President JD Vance, and US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz are scheduled to visit Greenland next week ahead of local elections.
According to local media, their itinerary includes a visit to the capital, Nuuk; attending a dog sled race in Sisimiut, Greenland’s second-largest town; and a potential stop at the island’s only US air base in the north.
But while the island and its mineral resources remain in the spotlight, this heightened attention is also fuelling the push for independence, with more Greenlanders feeling empowered to speak openly about the injustices of colonial rule.
Among them is Inuit singer-songwriter Naja Parnuuna, who has embraced her pre-Christian Indigenous heritage.
“I used to feel like it was cooler to be a Dane. Or cooler to be able to speak Danish where it was embarrassing to like practice our traditions,” she says.
Through her music, she has reconnected with her roots and encourages others to do the same.
“I began to realise how important it is to accept someone’s roots or my own roots. So that’s why I think it’s really important to bring that back so our people can, and we can, learn to love ourselves again,” she says.
For Sanimuinaq, this cultural revival is an act of reclaiming Inuit identity.
“Inuit hasn’t been heard. We have been so isolated for hundreds of years,” she says. “We have to liberate ourselves and take the word. Take the lead for ourselves. That’s why I feel hope.”
