A Decolonial Feminist Guide to Copenhagen

The following will help those seeking to decolonize their travel, minds, and lives in Copenhagen with practical site and activity recommendations and my personal reflections on the experience. A special experience will be noted for the people of my homeland—Hawaiʻi.

1. Voices from the Colonies exhibition at National Museum of Denmark

This exhibition provides a good introduction to Denmark’s past and current involvement in colonizing Africa, the Caribbean (in the present day “US Virgin Islands”), and Greenland. It appears Denmark is making attempts to raise its people’s consciousness by acknowledging and showing regret for its participation in activities such as the Atlantic Slave Trade. I, unfortunately, did not find information about what the descendants of the victims and current victims feel about Denmark or the narrative of this exhibit. So, it is still important to problematize what is being presented and stop ourselves from “forgiving” Denmark on the victims' behalf.

Tickets to the museum can be purchased on the National Museum of Denmark’s website or in-person at the main entrance. No student discount is available at this time.

2. Meet The Danes guided tour at the National Museum of Denmark

The native people of Denmark are the ethnically Danish people of today, and this tour will help you get to know the contemporary values and way of life of this culture. Denmark’s citizens’ are consistently ranked the happiest people on earth, and it is my hypothesis that this is related to the fact that its native people are the majority of its population. To be sure, the Danes of today are very different from those of over millennia ago (e.g. more practice the Christian rather than Norse religion). But, it is quite fascinating to observe a native culture that has thrived into current times in continuity. This has caused me to reflect on the ways that many other indigenous cultures would have adapted over time had they not been so heavily dominated by others.

Tickets for this tour can be purchased on the National Museum of Denmark’s website or in-person at the main entrance. No student discount is available at this time. Note that this ticket must be purchased in addition to general entry into the museum. This tour was offered three times per day when this post was originally written.

3. Viking Ship Hall guided tour at the Roskilde Viking Ship Museum

Decolonial travel is often about problematizing dominant narratives, and the Roskilde Viking Ship museum will allow you to do so in very nuanced and interesting way. Vikings are presented as violent village pillagers, so, while I do not hold enough expertise to refute that, it was interesting to learn from the museum guide that only two written accounts from this period depict the Vikings in this manner. When I first arrived to Denmark, I thought Vikings were brutal sailors who wore helmets with horns. It turns out more Vikings farmed and never went on ships. The museum guide also said the horn helmet is completely made up—evidence of one has never been found!

Again, I do not want my own ignorance to dismiss any wrong doings by these people. But, I chose to point out the less gory narrative of the Vikings to counter current colonial arguments that insist all humans inevitably resort to imperialism and genocide as a way to excuse themselves of responsibility for such actions in the present day.

More information and times of this tour can be found on the Viking Ship Museum website. The tour is done twice per day and is free (although entry into the museum is not). I found it easier to buy my ticket in person than navigating the website (it is not all translated in English). A student discount is available at this time. Roskilde is a little less than an hour away from Copenhagen by train, but it is well worth it to educate yourself and see original Viking ships!

4. The Royal Reception Rooms guided tour at Christiansborg Palace

A visit here to one of Denmark’s (many) royal palaces is a fun way to challenge yourself to resist the lure of that which colonization tells us to value—celebrity and consumer wealth. Notable features of this palace include the balcony where the heir to the throne is proclaimed monarch as well as several immaculate rooms containing artwork that has been owned by Denmark’s kings and queens over many generations. Danish citizens (generally) positively view the monarchy, and the royal family is always on the front page of the tabloids in the grocery store lines. I, too, can admit that I like qualities about the current queen like her down to earth personality. But, as someone with a small amount of Scandinavian descent, I continue to challenge myself to criticized (my) biases. Previous kings of Denmark owned companies for slave trading and plantations labored by slaves. Also, while Denmark’s absolute monarch voluntarily democratized around the time of the French revolution, there were many actions by the king that followed to keep the power concentrated in the hands of an elite few.

More information and times of the tour can be found on the Christiansborg Palace websites. The tour is done once per day and is free (although entry into the Royal Reception Rooms is not), as of the time when this post was originally written. It appears tickets are only sold in person. A student discount is available at this time.

5. Documents between the Hawaiian Kingdom and Denmark in the 19^th century at the National Archives of Denmark

As a person indigenous to Hawaiʻi, this experience has been most special to me, and I hope others at home will glean just as much clarity and inspiration as I have from it too. In a separate post, I detail my experience (as a business and STEM student with no archival experience) seeking out these materials that evidence the diplomatic relationship the Hawaiian Kingdom and Denmark had along with the steps for others to do the same. I highly recommend that all kānaka (Native Hawaiians) visiting Copenhagen see these materials for themselves. There is something so riveting and unforgettable about seeing the tangible documents including a treaty and government correspondence that our kūpuna (ancestors) created with Denmark, especially while you’re there (half way across the globe from Hawaiʻi!). There is much hope drawn from knowing that aloha ʻāina (a love for the land as an ancestor) can flow across the planet.

Conclusion

Although I am thoroughly amazed by the society that exists in Denmark today, I make it a point to point out the dark side of its history to keep myself accountable and to make way for areas of further investigation in this collective decolonial journey. For example, I am wondering if Denmark would have been a colonial power if it had not previously experienced Christianization (which placed man above earth and women) from outside forces. I also want to get even closer to the indigenous knowledge of this place, which may result in me deeply researching the impacts of the Roman Empire imperialism in this and other surrounding areas. All of this combined will help me return to the source of information that teaches us how to be in familial and equal relationship with the natural resources of this place. This is very much a process of co-knowledge-creation and, more accurately, co-remebering of knowledge already understood by our indigenous ancestors, so please join me in doing so!