As Denmark geared up for its most recent election, Lars Løkke Rasmussen—a towering figure in Danish politics—made his way to Vollsmose, a neighborhood long associated with socio-economic challenges and a significant immigrant population. Introduction  Given its status as one of Denmark’s most marginalized areas, Vollsmose naturally became a focal point for Moderaterne, the centrist party…

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https://youtu.be/M04GU-QacNo During Denmark’s election campaign, I was invited by Enhedslisten to speak at a townhall on the familiar issue of violence and crime in ethnic minority neighborhoods. As usual, it fueled the predictable political divide, locking the left and right into their opposing positions, which often(always)results in legislative paralysis. However, instead of staying in that…

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vollsmose was publicly shamed by national politicians for low testing rates and high infection numbers. In response—and defiance—I subverted this narrative by transforming a byline from the mayor into the empowering slogan “Bedst til test.” This slogan galvanized the neighborhood, turning a moment of blame into one of pride and unity….

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