“Denmark is a brutal class society.” Anne Sofie Allarp, Berlingske editor
Denmark has built a global reputation as the land of equality and strong communities. However, beyond the rose-tinted glass lurks a deeper truth, according to one of the leading journalists in Denmark. For example, people in lower-income groups live shorter lives than people with higher incomes. People from high-income groups tend to cluster together and keep low-income people outside of their social circles. In the same country, you can live a marginalized and lonely life, often with hard physical work, or you can live an “every other weekend in Dubai” kind of life. If you look at statistics, the Gini coefficient, which measures inequality, also portrays a degradation of the equality level.
As internationals, following a debate about class society in Denmark is very interesting, as we form a class of our own across income levels and ethnic backgrounds. Of course, even within the international community, you can distinguish certain internal “discriminations” triggered by income level, type of profession, country of origin, and so on. However, an international will always be an international in the eyes of Danish society.
Let’s look at the high-income clusters, where people live in 10+ million DKK villas. There are internationals who have reached a financial level to afford a villa there, and for sure, you will find them. However, taking a closer look, you will discover that they have the same struggles as all of us to enter the social circles around them. So while a rich international might discriminate against a poor international, they are both facing the same struggles when dealing with Danish social circles, making us a distinct class.
The Danish dream says that people should live relatively similar lives regardless of their profession, income, or location. It also says that people should be able to view each other as equals, regardless of income. Are we there now? The eternal debate has only recently restarted, so we should hear more opinions on the topic in the following weeks.
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