Make New York Dutch again: Netherlands lays claim to old territory

Update: Hold your horses and look at the publishing date. Hope you had a good laugh, and we’ll catch you next April Fool’s — and remember, always check your sources. 🤭

The souring of Dutch-US relations since the election of Donald Trump has finally hit a breaking point. The Dutch have decided to enforce old legal documents and take New York back. 

This decision comes as a consequence of Trump’s recent acquittal of New York mayor Eric Adams for corruption charges.

The straw that broke the camel’s back

The Department of Justice dropped all corruption charges against Adams this February, in a move many see as blatant quid pro quo for supporting Trump, reports The Guardian. 

“Adams’ acquittal shows us the US has gone too far,” says the leader of the Nieuw New Amsterdam (NNA) initiative, Marjolijn Jester.

Since the new US administration has been making claims to all sorts of land, the Dutch decided to take a page out of their book and are planning to reclaim New York City. 

Is that even possible? 

Sounds impossible to just demand a city back, right? Apparently it isn’t.

The British took over the former Dutch colony in 1664; however, British law isn’t codified, while Dutch law is. This means that the only actual records of NYC ownership still call the city New Amsterdam, with the Netherlands as its rightful owner. 

The Netherlands didn’t decide to dispute the ownership in 1664, and ever since then it’s belonged to the US solely based on precedent.

“But all of Trump’s moves show us that precedent doesn’t matter anymore,” explains NNA’s Head of Litigation, “so who’s stopping us from breaking it as well?”

The practicalities 

The Dutch announcement is already gaining a lot of support in largely democratic New York, where the civil initiative Save US! was started to work out how a transition to being a part of the Netherlands would go.

In a transitional period of five years, New Amsterdam would have the status of a territory, meaning its residents wouldn’t have full Dutch citizenship. 

READ MORE | American talent heads for the Netherlands as scientists flee US

They wouldn’t be able to vote in national elections, but would get to participate in Amsterdam municipal elections as an introduction into the Dutch political system. 

New Amsterdammers would have to take part in an intensive integration course that would include Dutch culture and language lessons, as well as volume adjusting lessons to make these Americans’ reintroduction to the Netherlands more seamless. 

A Dutch feel

The Netherlands is investing roughly €7 million into a lobbying initiative to increase support for New Amsterdam. 

They’re setting up poffertje stands across the city to showcase the sweeter side of Dutch life, and have promised that the Yankee’s uniform would become orange. 

Additionally, Roxy Dekker is set to have a tour of concerts in NYC malls to show a merging of Dutch and American culture. 

The Hudson would also be separated into 37 canals, with the new land in between being transformed into a Dutch-style neighbourhood. 

Not only would this give the city a Dutch feel, but it would also help accommodate the flow of immigration from other American states if New York were to become part of the EU, says Save US! spokesperson April Lloyd.

If the five-year period proves to be successful, New Amsterdammers would gain full citizenship rights. 

If not, they would remain a territory, but that’s okay according to April: “Our rights are getting diminished anyway, we might as well get free healthcare for it.”

What do you think of the Dutch plans for New York? Tell us in the comments!