The construction of ‘socially marginalised Greenlanders’ as a target group in Danish welfare policy and practice

Abstract

This paper examines the emergence of ‘socially marginalized Greenlanders’ as a distinct target category in Danish welfare policy and practice. It builds on analysis of policies targeting Greenlandic minorities in Denmark and interviews with welfare professionals in charge of implementing these. The paper shows how Greenlandic minorities are represented as characterized by markers of difference viewed to set them apart from other socially marginalized citizens. These relate to 1) structural differences that impact on the ability to receive and benefit from welfare services, 2) to the perceived cultural origins of the problems that socially marginalised Greenlanders face, and, finally, 3) to the excessive social problems associated in policies and by professionals with an upbringing in Greenland. The paper shows how policies and welfare professionals both reject and continuously resort to the notion of the target group as distinct from other socially marginalized citizens. In continuation of this, the analysis further shows how ambivalences and contradictions are not so much found between the levels of policy and practice, as other studies of policy implementation processes have demonstrated, as they are inherent within all policy and considerations about how to understand the target group they articulate.

Total pain and social suffering: marginalised Greenlanders' end-of-life in Denmark

“…However, some commentators have cautioned against the identification of Greenlanders as a specific target group. Nygaard-Christensen and Bjerge are critical of over-emphasising culture and cultural differences as contributing factors in relation to problems experienced by Greenlandic people (Nygaard-Christensen and Bjerge, 2021 ). They point to the risk of alienating Greenlandic people even further and overshadowing more diverse representations that foreground the experiences of Greenlandic minorities.…”

“…This includes a right to a translator if the doctor considers a translator necessary (Bekendtgørelse om Tolkebistand Efter Sundhedsloven, 2018 ). Greenlanders in Denmark have been discussed as an invisible and neglected group despite their status as Danish citizens because this very status means that their ethnicity is not registered in national registers which renders systematic assessment of their social and economic conditions difficult (Togeby, 2002 ; Nygaard-Christensen and Bjerge, 2021 ). However, surveys and mappings reveal an overrepresentation of Greenlandic people among the socially marginalised people in Denmark (Baviskar, 2015 ; Ahlmark et al, 2019 ).…”

“…This picture is also true for socially marginalised Greenlanders in Denmark who are overrepresented amongst those experiencing poverty and homelessness and those who are problematic users of alcohol and drugs (Ahlmark et al, 2019 ; Baviskar, 2015 ). Several Danish studies reveal structural barriers such as language, culture, ethnicity, and an inability to navigate Danish healthcare and welfare systems as factors in Greenlanders problematic access to welfare benefits (Togeby, 2002 ; Jakobsen and Larsen, 2014 ; Rådet for Socialt Udsatte, 2014 ; Baviskar, 2015 ; Social Boligstyrelsen, 2018 ; Ahlmark et al, 2019 ; Nygaard-Christensen and Bjerge, 2021 ; Krusaa and Jacobsen, 2022 ). A national survey of marginalised Greenlanders found that 50% of the respondents were homeless compared to 23% of the general population of people who are socially marginalised.…”

Global Power and Local Struggles in Developing Countries: An Introduction

“…A similar campaign for citizenship rights in the UK developed in 2004 when the UK government denied status to retired Gurkha soldiers who, having served in the British armed forces, were denied residency. France likewise has experienced drawnout struggles by soldiers of former colonies to gain rights after years of active service.15 Meanwhile, histories of the plights of Sami in Northern Scandinavia and the Greenlandic people under different Danish governments in Greenland as well as in Denmark, call into question dominant narratives of Scandinavia as politically progressive and inclusive(Chatterjee 2021;Nygaard-Christensen and Bjerge 2021). Romani groups in Europe are more widely known as marginalized.…”