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Elsa Laula Renberg

A freedom fighter and a feminist

by Nelly Bergqvist, Malgomajskolan SA1

Family & Upbringing

Elsa Laula Renberg was born just outside Vilhelmina. The time that Elsa was born into, can easily be described as a time of the oppression against all of the Samis. Only three years earlier, the Swedish state had determined a tillage border that would let the Sami continue to live as Samis but a combination of racial biology, supremacy and colonialism makes the Samis pay the settlers to live in their own land that they’ve used for centuries. This makes Elsa’s family struggle with their economy but thanks to their friends and relatives they manage to survive. Her mother was named Kristina Josefina Larsdotter and her father's name was Lars Tomasson Renberg. Elsa had four other siblings.

She was born 29 November in 1877, the same year that the government decides that all teaching has to be in Swedish. She had quite a good time in the school in Bäsksele that she went to, though. It’s located in a village outside Vilhelmina. Elsa were also very lucky that she had so close to home. It was told that Elsa’s teacher Lindbom was a sympathetic man that saw and understood the Sami culture from the start. He even started wearing shoes that were typical for the Samis. The school was very successful and they even had to sent children home because the lack of space and assets. But you can’t forget that the Samis didn’t have the right to talk their mother tongue. Elsa was diligent in school and thrived but was still skeptical with the differences compared to  schools for Swedish children. She was still thankful that she got an education whatsoever.

Elsa’s world changes

The same year that Elsa turned 10 years old her father was abducted and arrested by the police. Elsa said that every winter she saw how the herd shrunk. No one could guard the reindeer because they were also very busy with Elsa’s brothers and sisters. The reindeer easily spread in the winter time. Predators were also a big factor. Because of that they lost many reindeers and it led to critical poverty in their family. When the police came to demand damages from Elsa’s mother because of the reindeer theft they thought her father committed they barely had any reindeers left. He was sentenced to 8 months in jail in Umeå.

When Elsa turns 21 years old her parents decides to set up a small farm in Kaanan where they have lived for several generations. The settlers protest and complain loudly against Samis as farmers. Why? Because they were Samis. Elsa’s father was also looked upon as a reindeer thief even though he had been arrested very many years ago. This, and the fact that they lacked permission for the farming, led to a complicated and long conflict with the authorities until Elsa’s brother loses his right to Kaanan for good.

A terrible accident

It must have been a lovely weather the day before the trial about the land against the settlers in 1899. Elsa’s father and her youngest brother decides to go fishing with net. In that time, the fishing was a big food source to survive, almost bigger than the reindeers. They should’ve stayed home that day. Only a few hours afterwards they are found dead and wrapped in the fishing net. On the beach it shows there had been some scuffle but because the lack of evidence the police decided to drop the case. Elsa was only 22 years old when this happened.

This was really tough for Elsa and the remaining members of her family. They’ve struggled enough! But Kristina didn’t let the grief take Kaanan or her right to become a farmer away from her. She walks all the way to Stockholm by herself to meet the king the year after the accident. She demanded a letter that gave her the right to live in Kaanan until the day she died but also to use the land for farming. Kristina impressed the king and gets her letter.

Elsa inherited her mother’s fighting spirit and walked in her footsteps. She later discovered that the Samis had much worse conditions than other Swedish children. She fought for better schools for the Samis. The right for the Samis and education was really important for her. She educated herself towards being a midwife at the same time she started fight for the rights of the Samis very intense. She was really lucky that she had a stubborn mom. I think that’s a big reason that she fought so hard for her opinions and her own right.

Elsa did want a education which was hard to get with her background and the fact that she was a female AND a Sami. She applies for educating herself towards being a midwife with the Queen in Stockholm. The queen thinks Elsa seems interesting and a sympathetic woman and agrees to pay her entire education.

When Elsa starts her education in 1904 she is very busy with her political fights to spend time to her studies and that’s also the reason that she’s not being qualified. She takes her exam to years later.  After that, she spends a long time in the capital city Stockholm. It’s said that she was the first Sami to graduate as a midwife.

A covenant called the Fredrika-Bremer convent makes several researchers to investigate if the Sami should have the right to vote and get better education. This too was Elsa’s earnings. The same covenant makes it possible for Elsa to meet the mayor and he also became an important ally for her. They see the Sami people as something exotic and exciting so the women entitled compound started to discuss. Elsa took advantage of this and lifted her thoughts about her and her people’s rights and together with a man named Torkel Thomasson she lectures about the right to land and waters. Elsa also delivered letters from different Sami compounds that recently been created and hands it to the government.

Letter to the King

In the beginning of 1904, Elsa was selected by the Sami to represent them from Åsele and Vilhelmina. She got a lot of support from her relatives and friends and wrote a letter to the King in Sweden about the conditions that the Samis in her district were living under. Elsa quickly understood that if the interests of the Samis would reach success they had to get organised. During a stay in Sweden’s capital city Stockholm in the year 1904 she formed the first National Organisation of Samis. That time the women didn’t even had the right to vote so when she came to Stockholm they didn’t really take her seriously. Its name was Lapska Centralförbundet and she was also chosen to be their first president. The organisation sadly did not survive though, because the lack of funds for business but this was the first step towards a common interest organization.

The same year that Lapska Centralförbundet was formed, Elsa Laula had written the book “Beyond life or death? The truth behind Sami conditions “ She frames the issues and injustice that the population was hit by. The question that was brought up mostly was the question about ownership of their land or the right to stay. Even though the Samis were here first they had to pay taxes, as opposed to other people who did not. You only had to pay if you were a Sami. Elsa also fought for temperance and the need to organise the Samis which she also writes about in the book. She also mentions “ the seven tough years “ where she writes about other sami that she thinks had it much worse than her. The seven though years started the year 1892. She did not mention her own struggles and the struggles they had to go trough. The book has been printed in over 6000 copies. In the book she writes passionate about temperance, land rights, education and the need to get the samis organised. 

Her move to Norway

In the early 20th century, Elsa Laula moved to Norway. She was very driven and had to move because of the resistance from her own people but also her authority.  They thought she was too much and took out the turns too much. She got money to lecture about samien education but instead she talked about the land and the seas. This upsets the members. The swedish people also thought that Elsa could be a danger to the Swedish state. Remember that Elsa was mostly disliked by most of the people in the country. She often talked about the settlers and how they did not belong in the sami land. This ofcourse did upset the settlers and sends a constable to arrest Elsa for high treason. She heard about this in advance and took her chance to flee from Sweden. It’s for her own best and for her own safety. She manage to get over the border into Norway and never returned.

Elsa meets a man who is like her. He also fights for the rights for samis but in Norway. Even though Elsa was questioned when she started to express herself because she came from Sweden, she did not give up. The name of the man she met was Thomas and he was the nephew of the leader to a newly formed association. She was nearly 30 years old at that time and had given up the dream of one day being a mother. They get married in Drevja Church and 3 weeks later, Elsa gives birth to their first son. They named him Olav Kristoffer, the same name as the King in Norway, this may have been because Elsa wanted to show her loyalty to Norway because she moved to their country and area. Thomas was the perfect man. Not only because he fights for the sami rights, but he also took a last name after where Elsa grew up during the time where females were women looked down at the most.

In Norway she continued her politics about the Samis and was an initiator of the first Sami Association in Norway. Thomas stayed home to take care of their child while Elsa traveled around in Norway to lecure. She only traveled when the tasks in reindeer maintenance were less. Her involvement is impressive indeed. Beyond that, she managed to get Samis from the coast to get interested in not only the political situation of the Samis but also their national situation. They suffered the most from the “Norwegification” policy - which meant weakening of the Sami identity.

In 1910, the same year that Elsa forms Brurskanken Samiske Kvindeforening (Brurskanken Sami Women’s Association) her daughter Marie is born. The association is formed for one purpose ; for sami children. Elsa wanted it to be possible for them to go to a school where they could study their own language and culture in Nordland, Norway. Her young daughter doesn’t stop Elsa from continuing her politics and traveling around to speak her mind. When Marie turns one year old Elsa and Thomas travels around in Brǿnnoysund to spread her thinking and opinions to other samis in Norway. In a newspaper called “ Message from mountain “ where Elsa tells about how she meets norwegian politicians and how they discussed. She also talks about the need about supporting and the need to strengthen de samien language. This might have been what made Elsa to start thinking about forming a big samien landmeeting.

But the years before this happens, Marie passed away in an encephalitis the same years she would turned two. Only a few months before, Elsa’s mother also dies. The grief that hit Elsa must have been unbearable. Elsa has went through this before and stays strong. She doesn’t let the samien case matter rest. That her mother dies led to that Kaanan was no longer theirs. But Elsa couldn't do anything to help her siblings because she was living in Norway now.

In 1910, the same year that Elsa forms Brurskanken Samiske Kvindeforening ( Brurskanken Sami Women Association ) her daughter Marie is born. The association is formed for one purpose ; for sami children. Elsa wanted it to be possible for them to go to a school where they could study their own language and culture in Nordland, Norway. Her young daughter doesn’t stop Elsa from continuing her politics and traveling around to speak her mind. When Marie turns one year old Elsa and Thomas travels around in Brǿnnoysund to spread her thinking and opinions to other samis in Norway. In a newspaper called “ Message from mountain “ where Elsa tells about how she meets norwegian politicians.

Her first born child, Olav sickened in tuberculosis shortly after Marie dies. In that time, the disease is a secure death punish. There was no cure and the only thing you could do was send the child away to a home for this certain disease with the knowledge that they might never see them again. At the same time Elsa's beloved reindeer herd became mysterious sick and she stands in front of the fact that she might lose her son and herd.

Together with the Sami advocate Daniel Mortenson she called for the first Sami meeting in 1917, on February 6 in Trondheim. The meeting mostly included Norwegian Samis but also Samis from Sweden. The meeting became a strong Sami manifestation. What she did that day, still has a big impact. Without her, The Samis voices wouldn't have been heard.

Elsa Laula died 22 of July in 1931. She became 53 years old. During her lifetime she had not only fought for the Samis but she also gave birth to 6 children but unfortunately only four of them survived infancy. Thomas loved her unconditionally and even after her death, he continued to engage in politics.