TOLERANCE AND INCLUSIVENESS
Since Harald’s passing, people have streamed in their tens of thousands to say goodbye to the late king at the royal palace, where he lies in state, with many well-wishers remembering his sense of inclusiveness and tolerance.
Flags were flying at half-mast throughout the country and portraits of the late king in gala uniform could be seen at bus stops, trams and metro stations to shops, offices and public buildings.
The main avenue in central Oslo, Karl Johan, was tightly packed with people from all walks of life heading towards the palace, clutching flowers, handwritten cards, drawings and small national flags.
Mourners praised the late king’s spirit of inclusiveness.
“He meant a lot to us immigrants … We felt really very included. So, thanks to him, I feel so Norwegian,” Veselina Vitanova, a 43-year-old teacher originally from Bulgaria, told Reuters outside the palace.
Another referred to a speech Harald delivered in 2016 that went viral worldwide, in which he said: “Norwegians are girls who love girls, boys who love boys and girls and boys who love each other”.
“It embodies the way he felt about people and the way he wanted us Norwegians to feel about each other,” said Mari Eidsvaag, 32, who wore a T-shirt emblazoned with that sentence, a rainbow and a drawing of King Harald.
“I think it’s a very important statement, especially these days,” she told Reuters.
