The Last Frontier
By Jokin de Carlos Sola
When it comes to Greenland's history and the current refusal of its people to even consider the United States' proposal, one important factor is often overlooked: how the Inuit, who make up the majority of Greenland’s population, remember their heritage. This history has been shaped by promises and agreements made with British, Danish, Canadian, and American authorities that were frequently unfulfilled, leading instead to poverty, social breakdown, and long-term harm across the Arctic. To understand Greenlanders today, one must understand this memory. As Europe’s political and strategic role in the Arctic grows, this is something European leaders will increasingly need to take seriously.
The Inuit People
The Inuit people are spread across the northern fringes of North America, inhabiting what today is Alaska, Greenland, and the Canadian regions of Yukon, Nunavut, Northern Quebec, Newfoundland, and the Northwest Territories. From the eighteenth century onwards, these lands were gradually absorbed into the British, Danish, and later American colonial spheres. As with many other Indigenous peoples, early European interest focused largely on the fur trade. By the early twentieth century, however, Alaska, by then under United States control, and the northern territories of Canada became key sites for mining and oil extraction. This shift resulted in Inuit lands being seized or reclassified by American and Canadian authorities and in communities being pushed into treaties and agreements that were often poorly implemented or not honoured at all.
During the 1960s and 1970s, both the United States and Canada attempted to address some of these injustices through compensation schemes. For many Inuit communities, however, the damage had already been done. Economic growth and infrastructure development had taken place around them rather than with them, leaving traditional livelihoods weakened and social cohesion deeply affected.
Alaska and the Inuit
In Alaska, particularly around Prudhoe Bay, oil exploitation fundamentally disrupted Inuit economies based on fishing, hunting, and craftsmanship. Drilling took place in ecologically sensitive areas, pipelines were constructed across Inuit territory, and oil spills and industrial pollution damaged land and waters essential to daily life. The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971 provided financial compensation, but it also extinguished Indigenous land claims and transferred ownership into corporate structures rather than communal control. Inuit communities were largely excluded from meaningful participation in the new economy, as labour and expertise were brought in from elsewhere in the United States. Despite compensation, living conditions and economic independence deteriorated.
Canada and the Inuit
A broadly similar process occurred in Canada. Diamond mining at sites such as Ekati, Diavik, and Gahcho Kué, as well as the extraction of gold and other minerals, including tungsten, zinc, and lead, caused serious environmental damage. Chemical contamination and long-term ecological risks were often insufficiently addressed. Moreover, until relatively recently, these regions were administered as federal territories rather than provinces, meaning that resource exploitation was a power controlled by the Canadian state rather than local administrations. On top of this, Ottawa often forcibly removed communities from their territories to exploit such mining resources. However, the most lasting impact was the trauma of the residential school system imposed by the Government. Under this, Inuit and other Indigenous children were forcibly separated from their families and placed in institutions designed to assimilate them into white Canadian society. These schools became sites of widespread child abuse, where violence was inflicted on these children for things such as speaking their own language. Even to this day, hundreds of unmarked graves near former school locations continue to underline the scale of the harm inflicted.
In recent decades, particularly under the recent government of Justin Trudeau, Canada has made efforts to publicly acknowledge and address these past injustices. Nonetheless, a deep mistrust remains among Inuit and other First Nations communities towards mining, oil drilling, and state-led development.
The Inuit under Denmark
The Inuit people of Greenland also have their own harsh colonial history under Denmark. Authorities from Copenhagen were also responsible for forced relocations, the separation of children from families, and a general lack of investment in sustainable local economic development. These policies contributed to social problems that persist today, including high rates of alcoholism and mental health issues. However, Greenland’s historical trajectory diverged in important ways. The island’s extreme climate limited large-scale extraction for much of the twentieth century, and by the 1970s, Denmark was prepared to grant Greenland a high degree of self-government within the Danish Crown, which led to the current island government and parliament. As a result, Greenland today enjoys a level of political autonomy unmatched by the other Inuit communities elsewhere in North America. All land is publicly and communally owned, and local institutions exercise far greater control than those in Alaska or the Canadian territories.
It is precisely because of this history that Greenlanders reject Donald Trump’s plans so decisively. For them, joining the United States represents the risk of becoming a new Alaska. It would mean surrendering their sovereignty and granting Washington the power to authorise extensive drilling and mining with limited local oversight or obligation. While proponents in the United States argue that investment would follow, experience suggests that such projects would rely on American capital, American engineers, and American workers. Fishing grounds could be restricted or taken over by foreign companies, further undermining Greenland’s core economic sector. This future is not hypothetical to the Inuit; it is one they have already witnessed within their neighbouring communities. Financial promises in exchange for sovereignty are viewed with deep scepticism, as past treaties and agreements in the United States and Canada demonstrate how easily such commitments can be broken once control is transferred. While the current state of affairs of the Inuit people in Greenland is also perilous, their own sovereignty grants them a seat at the table when discussions on investment are brought forward.
This history matters because Greenland remains the only place in North America where an Indigenous people possess a country of their own. That is why Greenlanders are unwilling to give it away.
