Download the final survey report
In the many discussions I have had with foreigners as part of my role in leading activities aimed at cultural integration in Denmark, I got the impression more and more that certain challenges have not really been explored yet. It is often the case that well-educated foreigners leave Denmark due to not being fully capable of settling properly. The reason usually mentioned is that they have a strong difficulty in becoming a part of the community, and building a social network. Families become isolated and are unable to find their “place” here.
However, many people mentioned that not only do they struggle with integrating they also feel that they are not wanted in the country. That was the trigger to look more closely into this topic and served as the motivation for conducting this survey and to determine if the related experiences of not feeling welcome were singular and only the experience of a few or if it is the experience of many. By examining the experience of a large number of people it is my hope that problems can be identified and solutions found to help bridge the gap between Danes and the international community.
The result: 46% of the participants don't feel welcome versus 26% who do. 28% gave a neutral answer. Considering that 98% of the 703 survey participants are well-educated, this is a very worrying result especially as Denmark claims the need for well-educated work-force from abroad.
The result of the survey gives a strong signal that there seems to be a problem, that foreigners don’t feel wanted here. This is not only unpleasant for the foreigners themselves and can influence them to leave the country (which in fact many do), but it can also have serious consequences for Denmark and its economy.
Openness, friendliness, “hygge”, and treating people equally is the Danish way.
Or do we have to say “was” the Danish way? Considering the results of the survey, many foreigners don’t seem to experience these Danish qualities. Hopefully they will not get lost in the current focus of protecting Denmark.
Download the final survey report
Best,
Dagmar Fink
Comments
I consider myself to be an international, as it will make within one year the same amount of time spent in 'foreigh' countries as the length of time spent where I was born.
Danish... are they more racist then other nations? I really think not! However I also think that they are not less then any other nation.
TRULY, everyone at some point in their life's has been a little racist!!!!
I have heard prejudice from every possible side and nationalities alike.
I think prejudice exist regardless of where you live and it comes in many shapes and colours, specially nowadays when you hear NOTHING but the FOREIGNERS are taking our jobs and DAMAGING our economy. You hear it in the media and your neighbours are talking.
In every country I have been. IS the same!!!!!!!!!
THE EXACT SAME I have heard: ' THEY are taking our jobs' 'THEY do not celebrate the same festivities' 'THEY don't speak well our language'
ON THE OTHER HAND: I have heard THEY (emigrants in different parts of the world saying: 'THEY (the nationals) are cold' 'THEY are racist' 'THEY are not accepting us' many of these comments was said by people that did not knew ONE person from the country they were living. (emigrants complaining about nationals not knowing anyone from there and nationals complaining about emigrants not knowing any either!!!!)
SERIOUSLY Most people that say THEY, are finding excuses because 'THEY' are not being able to integrate, to connect with the culture, to accept the differences, to NOT prejudice, to NOT be racist.
I have meet really nice people in Denmark (and YES DANISH), my danish is far from perfect but I tried to speak it and they were happy for my effort. I had DANISH people (nooo not from the opposite sex) telling me to try to find a job and stay longer.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!
PS- Once you speak a bit Danish you will noticed that the way the language is formulated, many times when translated incorrectly in English it will sound EXTREMELY rude.
MOST of the time THEY (Danish) are not being rude is the actual language. For example the same happens with Russian, when a russian speaks in English many people may find the person rude, however the person is just formulating the sentences incorrectly as they do in their native language.
The reason why I choose NOT to Stay has nothing to do with the Danish, but to do with me.
Where I feel home, where I connect easier, where I integrated better.
My advise to all is 'THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK!' 'LOOK BEFORE YOU JUDGE' 'LISTEN! to HEAR IS NOT ENOUGH' ' DON'T BLAME OTHER CULTURES FOR YOUR UNSUCESS' The International ;0)
So am packing my things and going back to where people wont call me, second hand citizen, alien or niger.
My close friends are foreign or Danes who moved to Copenhagen. I've been sent on a wild goose chase for the 'precious' CPR number, I rarely get asked if I need help in shops etc and I have found it so hard to find a job.
I don't think Denmark is a racist country compared to other parts of Europe. But I do think there is a lot of undercover prejudice because many choose to believe stereotypes. I feel they are happy to accept me as an exotic gimmick but they find it scary I have a brain and some ambition because god forbid I might reproduce educated brown children and take over.
Saying that I'm not going to give up, there are these twisted ideas everywhere. I'm making and effort to learn the language and culture. My main annoyance is not being able to find secure work, so I put two fingers up at them and their formalities. And I am working on my own projects to become self employed. If they don't want to meet me half way, I will just take their money.
Good luck to you all!
I have never felt so unwelcome and lonely in my whole life. I want to leave and i will.
I came over, as the company I worked for in Australia is a danish one. My husband found a job as a designer within 6 weeks or our arrival, and we've generally found Danish people to be really friendly and helpful.
I guess at the moment, alot of our social life is with other expats and danes from my company, but I see this as being pretty normal when you're new in a place.
We've started at gyms/clubs and met some danish acquaintances through that. People we meet in bars seem to be nice, and I don't really see any difference in politeness than from home. Maybe slightly more reserved, but service staff (barmen, waiters etc) are just as friendly as they are back home...
Am I missing something?
@ Kim
Just superb
Moist danes, indeed. What a wet dream.
Denmark is a great country with a great system. Denmark treats every foreigner equally. By treating me equally, they gave me a cleaning job, as they give to other foreigners, and asked me to laugh when they laugh and cry when they cry.
I love Denmark and want to leave the country ASAP.
This summarizes my experiences as a foreigner in Denmark.
All countries have to market themselves to the rest of the world in order to attract businesses and hopefully gain some political influence. The usual marketing involves slogans of multiculturalism, freedom, democracy, tolerance...blah blah blah. All this is just marketing.
Denmark is no different, if it would market itself accurately as a highly xenophobic and intolerant country then how many international and foreign companies would set-up business there ?
If you want reasonable social acceptance as a foreigner in Denmark you have to become a puppet, someone they can order around and bully.
You have to laugh when they laugh, cry when they cry.
You cannot be an individual, for they own you now.
As long as you look white and you follow these rules you can "make it" as a foreigner in Denmark.
If you have a different ethnicity then none of your efforts matter, it will make no difference what you do because they will only see your colour, that is ALL they can see. They do not have the emotional and social intelligence to see beyond that, this is what happens in isolationist societies.
So keep to your own language and culture and just speak English to them. Unless you speak perfect Danish most of them won't bother with you anyway. You are better off spending your time learning a significant language like French or Chinese than Danish.
The Danes love to see you ridicule your own culture, it feeds their superiority complex. They want you to be dependent on them for your own happiness in life.
That is the function of systematic racism - to control the lives of those you consider lower than yourself.
So have some pride in you own background for heaven's sake, be proud of your ancestors and family. Do not let anyone steal that away from you.
Denmark, like most countries, do not understand what Integration actually is. It is not enough that foreigners learn the language and customs of the country.
Integration is not a one-way process !!!
It is a two-way process. The Danish society has to be willing to accept these foreigners as equals and give them the same opportunities as a native.
Otherwise things will not work: foreigners get trapped in poverty, the children of immigrants will have no self-identity but will look for it in gangs, and it all becomes a bad cycle of social alienation and segregation. All of which is the by-product of systematic racism.
Like other europeans the Danes put all the blame of social segration on foreigners, they lack the intelligence of self-scrutiny and self-criticism, because they are so full of themsleves.
So they look at simple and visible things like 'language' and 'culture' as causes of integration failure, not at how Danish society treats foreigners.
Again, they only look at things from one perspective.
The bottom line is, if the Danes are not prepared to accept foreigners as equal human beings, they should not take in any foreigners at all.
So why bother with Danmark, if you fall in love with a Dane, make him/her move to your country instead.
One "problem" if you can call it that. what u all says is just putting stones in the bag, yes many Danes are not happy about foreigners, but it's not because they do not like foreigners, but because they want to know more.
Like my ex she refused to go out shopping, & they didn't want to speak English, & because she found the Danes unfriendly. this was for almost a year, until i pushed her, and she started to mingle & open up.
That is one of the most important things, to open up to a Dane, even about things that you might find embarrassing as moist Danes don't but they want to know who you are before a contact is really created. if you open u, not just about good things, but also the bad, you will see the Danes open up more.
First, I would say that I had really no expectations when I moved to Denmark having lived in NYC and London before I just decided that I would be myself regardless of the situation and outcome. No expectation, no disappointment
Second, Danes are great, hard to break the friendship barrier and not less open just open in a different way. Just like you wouldn't use a can opener to open the gas tank on your car finding your way into a danes heart needs a different strategy.
Third, be selfish. Happiest country in the world when broken down is actually the most individualist country in the world, Danes think about themselves and their rights above anything else. The idea of letting others off the train for first or standing to left on the escalator is something in Denmark they have to create campaigns about. Learn to not expect them to take interest in you, help you, be nice to you they are like that with them own.
Finally, learn the language their nationality, humor, identity,everything is wrapped up in the language, if they speak English to you reply in Danish, I have done this 5 years in Netto into finally they stopped.
Patrick Kitchell
As a third year expat (due to my MSc studies), I've seen or experienced a number of these situations; I cannot give my account on a work experience here since I haven't had it (yet), but I'll approach it with as open a mind as possible, hoping this will be reciprocal.
Before I started at DTU we have even been lectured by a Danish sociologist, who gave a number of disclaimers and words of caution. Not one too many, I must say.
I wanted to thank you again for your good job and also suggest that it should be submitted to a number of Danish authorities, first of all for example the good old Immigration services, and maybe, why not, Politiken.. I
am sure that it would be much appreciated, especially given your accurate breakdown of the demographics that responded to the questionnaire.
I will graduate in a month or so and definitely intend (when time will permit) to join the forum you've created, as it seems very stimulating.
Keep up the good work and thanks for sharing it; kindest regards
I moved to Denmark due to their so called open society, many jobs and high salary rates. (I left my job in UK and moved here)
After spending all my savings in a year while finding an IT job, I decided to find any job. Finally I found a cleaning job (an English lady working at jobcenter in Denmark helped me to find that job).
After 8 months of temporary work I got permanent at that cleaning job.
Yes I agree that you have to praise Denmark all the times if you want to live here and remember never praise any other country in front of Danes.