I’m struggling with being in Iceland, while watching the state terror that is happening in Minneapolis and across the USA. It doesn’t make me feel safe to be so far away, it makes me feel helpless. Yesterday’s murder of Alex Pretti followed the same playbook as that of Renee Good: immediate lies from Kristi Noem and other administration officials demanding that we not believe our own eyes.
This lying is vile, but it is also weak. When your power is based only upon coercion, when you believe that you can force people (or countries) into submission, you project your fragility for all to see. Your power relies on compliance, fear, and isolation; on a calculation that the other party lacks resources or alternatives. You are betting it all, and thus stand to lose it all.
On Tuesday, Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, gave a moment-defining speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos in which he called on other nations to reject the aggressive logic of great power rivalry (full transcript). It’s strange for me, having spent the Fall diving deep into theories of international relations, to see so many quotations of Thucydides: “the strong can do what they can, and the weak must suffer what they must.”
In his speech, Carney rejects that Realist logic by noting that “there is a strong tendency for countries to go along to get along. To accommodate. To avoid trouble. To hope that compliance will buy safety. It won’t.” The first couple minutes of Carney’s speech were in French, and the final line of that portion translates to: “The power of the less powerful begins with honesty.“
I think his speech was incredibly impactful because it speaks not just to international relations or global trade agreements. His advice to the leaders of middle-power countries is equally valid for citizens of the United States facing the dissolution of our constitutional rights through force and lies. Compliance won’t buy safety. Power begins with honesty.
If you voted for Trump, there are hundreds of other lines crossed that could have prompted a deep reflection, but this should be the last. Look into your heart and ask yourself if these acts of violence align with your values. It’s okay to admit you were wrong, that you were lied to. But this week was a breaking point that forces a decision — whether as the leader of another country or a citizen of the USA. You can stand with your neighbors against tyranny, exposing the weakness of a bully when measured against a unified opposition, or you can take the side of dishonesty, corruption, and state violence. Silence in this moment is support for tyranny. Compliance won’t buy safety.
On Tuesday I participated in a candlelight vigil for victims of ICE, which was held in downtown Reykjavík by Indivisible Iceland. The event included a reading of victim’s names who have been directly murdered by ICE or died in detention. It was a small group of mostly Americans, but the vigil was covered by RÚV, the national broadcaster, as well as Vísir. Those links are in Icelandic, but include some video of the event, including me sharing a reflection. If nothing else it was good to meet other Americans in Iceland who are struggling with what ICE is doing and looking to express solidarity however they can.
On Saturday I attended a “Stand with Greenland!” rally outside of the Greenlandic embassy in Reykjavík, which was convened to disavow American bullying tactics and aggression towards the country. Although Trump has backed down from his threats to use military force to “take” Greenland there are still no clear details on his “framework of a deal” with NATO allies and he continues to disrespect Greenlander’s sovereignty in his rhetoric. I have more photos of the event in an Instagram set.
It was bizarre to watch Trump’s speech in Davos this week as he continued to belligerently say that American deserves to “own” Greenland, and yet multiple times mistakenly refer to it as Iceland. Of course, in line with the administration’s broader inability to ever admit a mistake, they denied that he said Iceland — even though we can all watch the video. There’s a reason this George Orwell quote from 1984 is making the rounds this week: “The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.”
Iceland has a very centralized government information system at island.is where after you log in with your kennitala (like a social security number) you can view and manage everything from your home address, marriage status, vehicle registration, health insurance, petitions, and much more. As a temporary resident I don’t have a ton of reasons to use it, but this week I logged in to verify that I’ve reached my 6-month threshold and now have Icelandic Health Insurance.
