The Current - Why Inuit in Canada are protesting in solidarity with Greenlanders

Episode Date: January 23, 2026

Inuit in Canada's north share deep cultural ties with Greenlanders. This week, people in Nunavut protested in solidarity against U.S. President Donald Trump's threats against the Arctic island, alongside thousands of people in Greenland and Denmark. We speak with two MLAs in Nunavut about why they are standing up for Greenland.

The Alto High Speed Rail Project is on track. Expected travel time from Toronto to Montreal, three hours. Next stop, public consultations in your community. Make your voice heard. Visit altotrain.ca for more information. This is a CBC podcast. Hello, I'm Matt Galloway, and this is the current podcast. Thousands of people across Greenland and Denmark gathered earlier this week in protest of U.S. President Donald Trump's ongoing threats.

There were also demonstrations here in Canada. This is what some protesters in Akhaluit had to say. Kadashid is my motherland. My entire maternal family is Greenlandic. And I live on this side of Inuit Nunangad. And it's all one homeland. It's important for us to show up for our homeland. We're all Inuit and this is all our land and this is all our family.

And so it's important to support each other and to keep each other safe. Because it's Inui Nuna. Like, that's over three countries. We're all over the world. Because I'm from Greenland, I moved to Echalud in 1981, but I'm still Greenlandic, and my family lives in Greenland, and I want my friends and family to see that we support them. The chant that we were doing was Galahchit do not Galahchit Bigot.

Greenland is owned by Greenlanders, and nobody can just come and take it. on how Trump's threats are being felt in the north. I'm joined by two guests. David Joannisi is the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut. He's also representing South Baffin. Fred Peterson is the MLA representing Cambridge Bay. He is the deputy speaker, and they are both in Iqalawit this morning.

Good morning to you both. Good morning, Matt, and good morning to your listeners. Good morning. Fred, we heard protesters in Iqalwit say, this is all one homeland. Can you help people understand that? How close is the connection between the communities in Canada's north and those in Greenland? Well, you know, the distance between Huluit and Nuk is not very far.

There's a seasonal air service between the two jurisdictions. And so we have cultural and family ties between Greenland and Nunavut. So, you know, we've got people from Canada. traveling over to Greenland for different cultural events and learning opportunities and Greenlanders traveling this way as well for the same types of things. Now, you have those ties as well. Pardon? Personally, you have those ties as well.

Yes, personally, I have those ties as well, too. I was originally born in Greenland and I have family over there. David, what about for you? How do you see that connection between folks in Canada, North and those in Greenland? Just to start off with, there is a very rich shared history between our jurisdictions between Nunavut and Greenland, and there is very still close connections. Talk about Fred and his family, but going way, way back,

there's a famous Inuit explorer named Rheldapsook. that moved from Nunavut to Greenland, and there's still stories about him that resonate. And it's very, very rich shared history. And we not only see Greenland as our neighbors, but there are friends and family. We saw this week, as I mentioned, David, members of the government in Nunavut raising the flag of Greenland.

Tell me more about that ceremony and why it was important. Yes, just in light of the peaceful protests that were happening in Copenhagen and Nook, as well as here in the Khalid, the legislature, and it was good timing. We had full caucus meetings, all MLAs, the members of the legislature, from across Nunavut or here in Nunavut or here in the Galuit and so we thought it fitting to have to show our strength and solidarity and our unity with Kalashli to raise the Greenlandic flag on our at our precinct what was the message that you wanted to send with that well our friend and

coworker Fred, but also other Greenlandic people that are here in Nunavut and across the bay. It's to show our unity. We are there with you. We support you. That was the main message. Fred, we were in Eklowicz in August. And when we spoke to people there about the threats of Donald Trump, at that point, people didn't seem particularly worried.

They had more pressing issues that they were concerned about. How are people feeling now? Is there a sense that if he's got his eye on Greenland, that maybe Canada's north could be next? Well, yeah, obviously, you know, I think with some of his recent actions and remarks that he's been making, you know, he seems to be very unpredictable.

And, you know, he keeps on talking about Canada being the 51st state. And, you know, if he did try to take Greenland, you know, we would likely be next, I guess. So, you know, I think the North in general and other parts of the world, you know, sometimes are on edge, depending on what he's saying and how he's reacting to different things. So, yeah, it's definitely causing some stress for sure. When we were there, Fred, one of the things we heard is that people are still calling on buy-in from the federal government for things like education. health care, infrastructure, connectivity, what have you.

What is your sense in terms of what the actions of Donald Trump towards Greenland mean for addressing those gaps in Arctic Canada? They have existed for a long time, but do you see this, Fred, as an opportunity to move meaningfully to try to address them? Yeah, definitely. And with our federal government and the budget they passed and the interest in the north, you know, they've allocated a lot of, budget a lot of dollars for infrastructure in northern Canada.

We definitely hope to see a lot of that here in Nunavut. We have a big infrastructure gap. And, you know, the government is talking about dual use facilities and things like that. So not just to be used for military type actions or defense, but also for community use in our communities here. So, you know, having that new infrastructure built, it will allow to help defend Canada, but it will also be available for use by communities. And we're looking forward to that. As like I said, we have a big infrastructure gap.

And the more infrastructure we can get up here, the better. David, those promises have been made before. Are you confident that this time is different when it comes to ensuring that money flows north and that the services and the infrastructure that people need in the north are actually provided? There's always hope and we do want to see more investments in Nunavut. And our legislature can only do so much. And my colleagues here, including Fred and the Premier of Nunavut, we are wanting to ramp up our infrastructure and close.

that gap. I think the attention that the north, including Nunavut and Greenland, have been getting, it's continuing to escalate and we hope that it will mean a better future for our residents and our territory. Fred, just finally, what do you think is at stake here? To David's point, I mean, the tension has been escalating. What people have been hearing from Donald Trump about Greenland has been alarming to people, not just in the north, but around the world. What do you think is at stake here?

Well, our security and our sovereignty, obviously, is at stake. You know, we cherish where we live and our land and people. And, you know, we want to keep it that way. None of us want to become Americans, Greenlanders or Canadians. and, you know, we want to continue living the way we do, but moving forward, but moving forward within Canada and Greenland moving forward within Greenland. So, you know, we share those same goals, and we have some of the same fears because of, you know, the unpredictability of Mr. Trump.

And your sense is that now is an opportunity to capitalize on some of those promises that have been made in past, that this could be a great chance to move that forward? Yes, for sure. Yeah. I'm glad to talk to you both about this. It's important, particularly from the perspective of those in the North. Thank you both for being here. Thank you for having us.

David, Joe Anansy, is the speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Nunavut. He represents South Baffin. Fred Peterson is the MLA representing Cambridge Bay. He is the deputy speaker of the Legislative Assembly, and they were both in Echalwa this morning. This has been the current podcast. You can hear our show. Monday to Friday on CBC Radio 1 at 8.30 a.m.

at all time zones. You can also listen online at cbc.ca.ca slash the current or on the CBC listen app or wherever you get your podcasts. My name is Matt Galloway. Thanks for listening. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca slash podcasts.