Nov. 10, 2024 / Updated Nov. 22, 2024

by Mark Tiler Richmond, Bricklyn Eagle Politics & Law Correspondent

We have received several thoughtul Letters to the Editor in response to this post. They can be found at the end of Mr. Tiler Richmond’s article.

Led by Federal Council President Hilma Plater-Zybrick, a growing number of Bricklynites are calling for Bricklyn to consider rejoining the Kingdom of Denmark in light of what many view as the disturbing results of this past Tuesday’s U.S. Presidential election.

As many Bricklyn Eagle readers are aware, Bricklyn was established as an independent enclave within the U.S. State of Vermont in 1981, at which time Bricklynites as a group also left Denmark for Vermont.

The Kingdom of Denmark (aka the Danish Realm) today consists of the semi-autonomous countries of Greenland and the Faroe Islands, along with the nation of Denmark.

Asked about the idea of associating Bricklyn with the Danish Realm, Plater-Zybrick said “I’ve heard from numerous Bricklynites who are stunned by the election of Mr. Trump given his anti-democratic, demagogic rhetoric. It runs completely counter to Bricklyn’s core values.

Some have also expressed concern that Bricklynites will be put at risk of being deported from their Vermont home as illegal immigrants.“

Plater-Zybrick announced that the Federal Council at its emergency meeting this past Friday, “unanimously agreed to ask Federal Chancellor Malter Thurnbrick and Chief Prognosticator David Bricks to brief the Council on the likely impacts of the U.S. election on Bricklyn, and options on how Bricklyn can respond, including the option of associating with the Danish Realm.”

Support for Bricklyn’s “Association” with the Kingdom of Denmark

A newly formed group, calling itself “Bricklyn Back to Denmark,” announced its support of the Federal Council’s decision to look into associating Bricklyn with Denmark as an “autonomous region,” as is the case with Greenland and the Faroe Islands.

Editor’s Note: In a survey of 500 Bricklynites conducted by The Bricklyn Eagle this past Friday and Saturday, 72% supported joining the Kingdom of Denmark; 15% opposed; and 13% were unsure.

Federal Council member Bill B. Butler, who often espouses conservative positions, said he “concurs with the Council’s call for Chancellor Thurnbrick to provide details on what associating with Denmark would entail, and its impact on Bricklyn’s longstanding relationship with the State of Vermont.”

Butler also noted that association with Denmark would “most likely involve Bricklyn remaining where it is currently located in Vermont, but at the same time becoming part of the Kingdom of Denmark.”

📍 Association with Denmark would also raise the question of whether Bricklyn would be admitted as a member of the European Union or, more likely, as an EU Overseas County and Territory.

Another, though less likely, option would be for Bricklynites to find and physically relocate to a new home wholly outside the territory of the United Sates.

The Federal Council also asked Chancellor Thurnbrick to brief the Council on the risks of mass deportation of Bricklynites on the basis of their being illegal migrants to the United States.

A Dissenting Voice to the Idea of Rejoining the Danish Realm

Pastor Johnny Plater Kahn, who led the unsuccessful 2023 effort to ban the consumption and manufacture of donuts in Bricklyn, told members of the press that:

“Bricklynites should let Americans decide for themselves whether they prefer a dictatorship to a democracy. And frankly, we could use a wise and righteous dictator here in Bricklyn, given how un-godly the practices and beliefs of so many Bricklynites have become.

Those who don’t believe in Making Bricklyn Great Again, should be deported from Bricklyn. Let them return to their fantasy land of Denmark. True Bricklynites, unlike our enemies within, have no desire to live in such a decadent, secular haven.”

When questioned by this reporter on whether he considered himself and his followers to be illegal immigrants, Khan said, ‘that’s a phony issue being raised by you in the fake media. It will only be those criminal and leftist Bricklynites who will have anything to fear about deportation — and if they’re deported they’ll likely be sent back to Denmark, the socialist country they truly love.”

Next Steps Under Consideration

The Bricklyn Eagle has reached out to Bricklyn Federal Chancellor Malter Thurnbrick and to Denmark Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen for comment.

Thurnbrick told us that he, along with Chief Prognosticator David Bricks, plan on briefing the Federal Council at its’ upcoming November 25th meeting on the matter of re-associating with Denmark.

A spokesperson for Denmark Prime Minister Frederiksen informed us that “the Prime Minister, in consultation with King Fredrik X and senior government officials, will give thoughtful consideration to any request from the Tripartite Realm of Bricklyn to associate with the Kingdom of Denmark.”

Are Bricklynites Protected From Being Deported from the State of Vermont as Illegal Migrants?

Some background for Bricklyn Eagle readers:

In 1981 the State of Vermont passed Act 444, a law authorizing the establishment within Chittenden County of an autonomous enclave (i.e., The Tripartite Realm of Bricklyn) on no more than 250 acres of privately owned land. The law also authorized future in-migration not to exceed 500 LEGO individuals per year. Finally, Act 444 ensured that the Realm of Bricklyn would be self-governing, with internal laws and policies wholly set by a newly established Realm of Bricklyn Federal Council, without any interference from the State of Vermont “unless an action taken by the Federal Council is found to be a threat to the health, welfare, or safety of Vermonters.”

While Bricklyn is physically located within the boundaries of Vermont, unlike Vermonters, Bricklynites are not, and have never claimed to be, citizens of the United States, or even resident aliens. Citizens of Bricklyn do not have green cards, and cannot apply for them.

Surprisingly, it seems unclear precisely what legal status Bricklynites hold within the State of Vermont, and correspondingly, within the United States. It is an untested legal question as to whether Vermont’s Act 444 would limit the U.S. government from carrying out orders to deport Bricklynites as illegal immigrants.

Given the difficulties Bricklynites — or any LEGO-based people — would have living as very little people within a human-scale environment, perhaps it is not surprising that the legal status issues noted above have never been addressed. There would be little reason for Bricklynites to want to live outside their LEGO enclave.

📍 The scale of a LEGO minifigure to a a human is approximately 1:42.

📍 It should be mentioned that some Bricklynites have ventured into the Outerlands of Vermont — whether as merchants purchasing some farm products or as tourists seeking to view the recent solar eclipse.

In Surprise Move, Some Vermonters Call for Vermont to Join Denmark

The Bricklyn Eagle has also just learned that a number of Vermonters are now calling for the State of Vermont to join Bricklyn in seeking to associate with the Danish Realm.

A press release from the newly formed group, “Vermont Join Denmark” (VJD), states that:

“We join with our Bricklyn friends and neighbors in standing for democracy and against autocracy and fascism. We believe it is worth discussing whether this can best be accomplished by Vermont joining the Danish Realm.

As Vermont once decided to join the United States in 1791, it may now be time to consider joining a vibrant democracy such as Denmark.”

Montpelier, the capital of Vermont, is just 1595 miles from Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, which is part of the Danish Realm. In fact, Montpelier is far closer to Nuuk than is Copenhagen at 2196 miles.

Other Vermonters have quickly spoken out against any such move, arguing that this is not the time to give up on democracy in America.

Instead, they say, Vermonters and others should redouble their efforts to stand as a bulwark against anti-democratic, authoritarian proposals.

Still others remain insistent that “it can’t happen here.”

We welcome Letters to the Editor. Please email to: bricklynvt@gmail.com

To the Editor: Thanks Walt!  I appreciated your article on Bricklyn becoming part of Denmark. Keep in mind, Denmark invented co- housing, so it’s kind of a socialist country …  and that’s good, right?  I was also interested in the question whether Bricklynites would be considered illegal immigrants and be deported — but maybe it’s all immigrants, not just illegal ones that the new administration wants to kick out? VTers have a history of hiding small groups of outsiders within our state (think hippies), so they might be safe for a while … Thanks again for the news from the brick! — Nancy S., Vermont

To the Editor: I wish Bricklynites great success in their efforts to join Denmark, but I am not optimistic that they will succeed. Following the 2016 election which placed Donald Trump in the presidency, many of us petitioned Great Britain to take our country back, explaining that our 1776 revolution was an impetuous act, not well thought out, and short-sighted. Instead of agreement, we got a lot of “We told you so,” and that “anyone in their right mind could have seen this coming.” After Tuesday’s election, some of the original petitioners want to try again, but I fear the rejection will be twice as caustic  and for good reason. 

Nonetheless, although I’m not optimistic regarding your plea to Denmark, I do understand the conditions that have brought about your appeal and hope that Denmark will consider your request in a good light. However, I do  think  that a Bricklyn departure from its safe and welcoming home in Vermont would constitute a local ( if not a national) tragedy and raises the question whether or not a community like yours, that is brick solid, can long endure. — Irv S., California

Reply from the Editor: I believe what many Bricklynites have in mind is remaining an enclave in Bricklyn’s current Vermont location, not relocating to a new enclave within the nation of Denmark. The “model” could be association with the Kingdom of Denmark in a manner similar to Greenland and the Faroe Islands.

📍 Just what is an enclave? Wikipedia notes that: “An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one.” According to WorldAtlas.com: “There are just three enclave countries in the world: Lesotho, San Marino, and Vatican City. Both San Marino and Vatican City are in Europe, and are surrounded by territory belonging to Italy. Lesotho is the largest enclave country, while Vatican City is the smallest.” Bricklyn would be second only to Vatican City as the smallest enclave in the world, being 250 acres in size, compared to Vatican City’s 121 acres — but information sources such as Wikipedia and WorldAtlas, likely for their own human-centric reasons and biases, do not appear to recognize LEGO realms such as Bricklyn as nations.

Part of Downtown Bricklyn & Harbor (above left). Photo from Bricklyn Eagle archives. / Photo of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City (above right). Photo by Daniel Zbroja. // Map of Vatican City’s borders with Rome. (below). Screenshot of Google Maps.

To the Editor: As a member of the Bricklyn Chapter of the Alliance Française, I’m disappointed that Bricklyn officials are only considering an association with Denmark. Bricklynites seem to forget that one of the primary reasons for thousands of Bricklynites leaving Denmark in 1981 and emigrating to Vermont was because of the strong (and justified) belief that Bricklyn’s needs were not being addressed by the Danish government.

Bricklyn should also see what the French government would be willing to “put on the table” to attract Bricklyn to associate with France. What’s more, there’s a part of overseas France that is considerably closer to Bricklyn than is Denmark’s Greenland. I’m speaking of the French territorial islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, located not far off the southwest coast of the Canadian Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, just 950 miles from Bricklyn / Burlington, Vermont.

What’s more, what can Canada offer to attract us? We’re only 70 kilometers from the Quebec border, and being in Quebec is almost like being in France, though the Quebecois do speak with a very different accent!

I’m sure the Alliance Française would help assist Bricklyn officials with any negotiations with the French Republic. We would even suggest Patsy’s French-style Café in Bricklyn as the perfect meeting spot for such talks! –– Bill Tiler French, Bricklyn, Vermont.