“But beyond the intergovernmental bargains that the European Union tends to represent during the sovereign debt crisis, the EU and we Europeans embody many normative and shared cultural values”. And with that resonating quotation, my European Philosophy class at the London School of Economics finished; the university bell struck brazenly signaling the end of my one-hour lecture. Despite my ardent urge for a decent cup of Earl Grey and a cigarette during the break, I could not help but feel that my lecturer’s words had some greater salience.
European identity indeed became a quasi-obsession for me, so much so that I eventually wrote my dissertation on the topic. My research uncovered that for centuries the idea of Europe had been at the forefront of European polemic and self-understanding. Traditionally and historically, the nations of Europe have been bound by a plethora of characteristics that have set themselves apart from other civilizations in the world. This cultural ethos and collaboration has been engrained deeply in the European psyche, originally through the widespread influence of the Roman Empire and its presence in almost all parts of Europe. The Romans spread their legal customs and eventually legalized Christianity throughout the Empire in the 4th century AD, giving Europeans both a common legal system and a common religion.
Hence Roman law became the single most unifying feature of the continent at large. Edmund Burke described Europe as independent states, united as a common culture “digested into a system and disciplined by Roman law” (Pagden, 2002:43). He went on to say due to this universal legal system, a European would feel at home residing in any of these independent states (ibid, 43). The European Court of Justice has striven towards a continental legal system and has by and large succeeded; primacy of EU law was firmly established through cases such as Van Gend en Loos (1963:Case 26/62) and Costa vs. ENEL (1964: ECR 585 6/64). Additionally, T.S. Eliot believed that Europe had a common tradition of Christianity; “it is in Christianity that our arts have developed; it is in Christianity that the laws of Europe have been rooted. An individual European may not believe that the Christian faith is true; and yet what he says, and makes, and does, will depend on Christian heritage for its meaning” (Luxmoore and Babiuch, 2005:87). The ancient peoples of Europe had therefore become united under a common respect for a legal system and now shared a common identity through a common religion.
Montesquieu, in his De l’esprit des lois, recognized another characteristic that made European culture distinctive. He believed that Europe, a relatively small geographic area did not foster the establishment of empires as its small scale favoured the spirit of independence (génie de liberté) (Pagden, 2002:118). Moreover, this was down to the fact that the Enlightenment and the advanced legal institutions (république des lettres) Europe possessed in the 18th century differentiated Europe from other non-European regions and this gave rise to the nation-state (ibid 118). It was the epoch of universalism and rights, which sew the seeds for the revolutionary age of the 18th century (starting with the French Revolution).
The fact is, at least on the face of things, there is so much more that binds Europe together in the present age than it did historically. We have a common market, legalising the free movement of goods, people, capital and services, many Member States of course share a common currency and we even share a fledgling common foreign policy.
Despite all the economics and politics, one thing has remained for Europe over the millennia: a common culture. This culture that has survived and evolved over time permits Europeans to collaborate in spheres of education, the arts and communications that transcend bailout packages, “haircuts” and scary bank deposit levies. The focus on culture provides the perfect ambience for the creation of a European citizenry that will indeed foster a European ideology and Member State collaboration for many centuries to come. The Directorate-General for Education and Culture (DG EAC) of the European Commission has secured this dedication to the establishment of Europhiles through the Erasmus project, a noteworthy programme that grants university students from all over Europe the opportunity to study elsewhere on the continent. This Member State cross-border institutional cooperation is a vital step in allowing Europeans to delve into a culture of another European country and even learn a new language. This is a predominant way to mobilise a European identity for the five hundred million citizens around the continent.
Furthermore, the designation of European Capitals of Culture on an annual basis has been shown by the European Commission to promote an appurtenance to Europe. This innovative idea, at the request of the iconic Hellenic Minister for Culture, Melina Mercouri, has rallied Europeans behind the chosen cities; it is a celebration of the richness and diversity of European culture. Its annual rotation encourages every member state and candidate states of the Union to reap the benefits of becoming cultural epicentres for their chosen year.
More Member State collaboration can be initiated by the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI), giving one million Europeans from at least seven Member States the opportunity to propose legislation on a topic of their choosing. The first of these to be adopted was Fraternité 2020, which had the aim of ameliorating funding for EU exchange programmes like Erasmus. Other Member State collaborations in the form of ECIs that have been registered with the Commission are the Single Communication Tariff Act, aiming to curtail roaming fees and End Ecocide in Europe, promoting green issues.
What this article has explored is that we must not, as Europeans, focus on our differences but embrace our similarities. We must cultivate a true European culture, and not settle for a culture of euros, economic governance and monetary policy. There are more ways to collaborate than just via the internal market, but also through arenas that embrace a culture of collaboration via Europe’s heritage. Neofunctionalist theory will argue that “spillover” will allow cultural collaboration to then become collaboration in political, economic and fiscal fields. The European identity will therefore mend many wounds that have been created with the Eurozone crisis and will eventually assist in fixing economic and political integration. Europeans are stronger together; in an increasingly multi-polar world (USA and the BRICS), Europe’s remit and influence is diminishing by the decade. It is important that we remain united and collaborate so that we keep an important status worldwide.
The Constant Times 