A series of demonstrations aimed at raising hope for the future of US democracy began in front of the US Embassy on Dag Hammarskjölds Alle in Copenhagen on Monday afternoon.
Around 100 people came to the first of four demonstrations, which are to take place at 4:30pm each Monday over the coming month, organiser Rhea Leman told The Local.
At Monday’s protest, a banner reading “Americans – Don’t Let Your Democracy Die” was held in front of the embassy.
Since returning to office in the White House in January, President Donald Trump has pursued a string of policies which critics say evidence a move towards authoritarianism.
Among policies directly or potentially affecting Denmark, Trump has withdrawn the US from the World Health Organization and Paris Climate Agreement, imposed tariffs against the EU and repeatedly vowed to seize control of autonomous territory Greenland. Vice President JD Vance has described Denmark as “not a good ally” of the United States.
Leman, an American-Danish playwright and stage director, said she was a veteran of political protests going back to the Vietnam war, but had never organised one herself before.
She is arranging the demonstrations as an individual citizen, rather than as part of a group or organisation, and said she aims to “spread hope” alongside the message that many Americans oppose current political developments in the United States.
Why are you doing this?
“I'm an American. I'm also Danish, a dual citizen living in Denmark for many, many years. And it's just something that I had to do because of all the frustration and all the anger and also the sadness around what is happening right now.
“So many people are sitting alone with this, and I really believe that the only way to deal with this is to be with other people, to gather.”
READ ALSO: 'We had to get out': Americans who fled to Denmark to escape Trump
What is your message and who is it for?
“Anyone. Anyone that needs to be with other people and to express our hope. I think it's really important that we still have hope.
“I'm hearing [things like] ‘Trump is there, we can't do anything.’ That's not true. We can, and there are things happening in America, and I'm really surprised that the Danish media is not writing about that, because we're hearing about what Trump is doing, but we're not hearing about the demonstrations that are happening.
“Trump sells papers and this is what they concentrate on, but it's really important that people know that there is something happening. There is a movement happening in America right now, and let's hope they continue. I think the worse [the situation] gets, the more people will hop on board.”
What can Americans in Denmark do if they feel this way?
“Meet, discuss, really look for something positive, because there's so much negativity.”
“And I get it, there is a lot of negativity. We're overwhelmed. We haven't been through this before. This is unprecedented. I mean, we don't know exactly how to deal with this, but I do believe in gathering. I do believe in discussion, and I do believe that we cannot give up on America, because America is not just Trump and JD Vance and [Elon] Musk and the oligarchs. It is the American people, and we have to have faith in them.”
Do you think this is the consensus?
“I think the worse it gets, the more people we will see demonstrating. It's very tough right now. You know, he's starting to go against the courts. That's really dangerous.
“He only won by 2.5 million people in the popular vote. We have to remember that and I do think people are tired.”
How do Danes fit into the picture here?
“[National broadcaster] DR came to the demonstration yesterday, and they had it on the news last night, but they didn't speak about our demonstration. They actually only talked about the movement in Denmark to boycott US products and our demonstration had nothing to do with the boycott.
“Maybe that’s because the boycott is not as abstract as [the threat to] democracy.
“But what I personally will say to Danes is, we have this demonstration, everybody is welcome.
“We believe that more people will make us more visible, not only to people in Denmark, but to people in the United States. We want people in America to know that we support them. We support Americans. We don't support Trump and his gang. We have to remember he didn't win by very much, this guy.”
“If we give up, that’s when they win. We must not give up on the American people.
“I think some people at this point that have voted for him are very disenchanted, and as soon as they can feel in their pocketbooks that they will be suffering because of his decisions, then they’ll change their minds.”
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