Rights Greenlanders would lose if they became Americans

It's a long list

On Friday evening, the leaders of five Greenlandic political parties released a joint statement asserting, “We do not wish to be Americans.” Their statement comes in the midst of increasingly jingoistic rhetoric from the Trump administration, triumphant from its invasion of Venezuela, threatening to invade Greenland on a near daily basis. You can hardly blame the Greenlanders for their resistance to this plan, since citizens of Greenland have access to a strong social safety net through their relationship to Denmark giving rise to a question I have been surprised to not see addressed by the media: What rights would Greenlanders lose if they became part of the United States?

In exchange for paying one of the world’s highest tax rates, averaging somewhere around 45% of income, citizens of Denmark receive some of the world’s most generous social safety benefits including:

Paid parental leave: In Denmark, the person giving birth receives 14 weeks of paid leave; other parent receives 2 weeks, and an additional 9 weeks paid is available for both parents. Compare that to the United States Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) which entitles eligible employees to 12 weeks of unpaid leave.

Subsidized daycare: In Denmark, daycare costs for parents are limited to 25% of total cost, with some receiving free childcare depending on the municipality. In some places you can be paid for providing your own child with childcare. The United States has no such benefit and indeed the Trump Administration recently froze childcare funding to all fifty states as it claims to investigate “fraud.”

Free public schools and higher education: Students at Denmark’s public universities receive free tuition, and receive a grant to cover living expenses (nearly $1,000USD/month). The United States has free public elementary, middle, and high schools, but no free public universities (though some states do provide tuition assistance to residents).

Limited Workweek: Danes have a 37-hour official workweek, five weeks’ paid vacation, and receive an annual “holiday allowance” equal to one percent of their salary. That means someone who makes 100K receives a thousand dollar bonus to fund their vacation! Danes are also encouraged to take three weeks of their vacation back-to-back in summer months. In the US, no federal law limits the number of hours adults aged 16 and up can work.

Minimum wage: The minimum wage in Denmark is approximately $16 USD. Contrast that to the United States’ minimum wage of $7.25/hour.

Retirement: Danes are covered by a universal pension system for ages 67+ (increasing to age 68 in 2030), with a monthly payment of approximately $2,500 monthly (if you are single) or $1876 (to each person if you are cohabitating). 

Do the Danes regret their investment in the well-being of fellow citizens? They do not. Indeed, the Danes consistently rank as one of the happiest countries in the world. According to the World Happiness Report’s 2024 data, the only people happier than the Danes are the residents of Finland, who similarly invest in and benefit from a generous welfare state. 

Given the high quality of life that Denmark offers to its citizens, it’s hard to imagine why any Greenlander would ever choose to be an American.