The mayor of Greenland’s capital on Thursday called on media professionals and content creators to act responsibly after a German comedian’s failed attempt to raise the American flag.
German comedian Maxi Schafroth, 41, tried to raise the American flag on a flagpole near the cultural center in Nuuk before he was confronted by angry passers-by.
When questioned, he claimed to be a US official before leaving, drawing disapproving looks from locals, according to a journalist on the scene with the Agence France-Presse news agency.
According to local media, he was reported to the police and fined.
Avaraq Olsen, mayor of the Kommuneqarfik sermersooq district, which includes the capital, said the stunt was harmful to an “already vulnerable population.”
“Hoisting a flag in the cultural center of our capital, the flag of a military superpower that has been implying military violence against our country for weeks, is no joke,” she said in a statement.
“It’s not funny. It’s extremely damaging.”
Olsen said Greenlanders, especially children, were concerned and scared about the current situation.
“If you increase the fear of content, clicks or laughter, you are not being bold or creative,” she said.
“You are contributing to the suffering of an already vulnerable population… So wait a moment before filming. Think before you stage something ‘funny’.
“Think about whether your next question or stunt will inform the world or simply make a child cry or a family feel less safe in their own country.”
Greenland’s government is working to relieve the population’s stress and anxiety caused by U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to seize the Arctic.
Schafroth is known in Germany for his involvement in the satirical program Extra Drei, broadcast by the NDR channel and which attracted more than a million viewers.
In a statement to the German Der Spiegel and the Ritzau agency, the channel expressed its “regret” after the incident.
Trump’s long-standing territorial plans for Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, had increased recent tensions in US-European relations.
He has since backtracked on the threat to use force to acquire Greenland and started talks with Copenhagen and Nuuk.
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