‘Make America Go Away’ red caps become symbol of defiance in Greenland standoff

COPENHAGEN — One Copenhagen clothing store's tongue-in-cheek take on US President Donald Trump's red baseball caps has become an unlikely symbol of Danish solidarity with Greenland, as protests mount over Trump's demands to buy the vast self-governing territory.

The red caps resemble the "Make America Great Again" (MAGA) caps of Trump's supporters but feature slogans like "Make America Go Away" and "Already Great."

Store co-owner Michael said the caps had languished unsold for months before swiftly gaining popularity. "We only made one hundred to begin with," said Michael, who declined to give his surname. "When it went viral it was very, very popular."

Principal owner Jesper Rabe Tonnesen devised one of the caps' slogans, "Nu det NUUK"—a Danish pun that sounds like "Nu det nok," meaning "Now is enough," but substitutes the "nok" with "Nuuk," the capital of Greenland.

"I thought, 'How can you communicate in an easy way while putting your foot down?'" Tonnesen told Reuters, adding that he had distributed 300 caps by cargo bike at a protest held in Copenhagen on Saturday.

The phrase Nu er det NUUK has gone viral, and refers to Greenland's capital Nuuk—and can be translated from Danish as Enough is enough. Thomas Traasdahl/ Ritzau Scanpix/ via REUTERS

Tens of thousands of people rallied in Copenhagen and Nuuk at the weekend chanting "Greenland is not for sale" and marching to US diplomatic posts, many of them wearing the protest caps.

Trump says Greenland is vital to US security because of its strategic location and mineral deposits, and he has not ruled out using force to take control of the island. His threats have triggered a diplomatic crisis between the NATO allies.

"People have an urge to get out there with a message. We've just had enough and we're fed up, sad and tired," Tonnesen said. — Reuters