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Ahead of the European elections in May we explore the notion of European citizenship and European identity. Can we speak of a true 'European people'? And if so, what would be its characteristics? We speak with two thinkers with opposite opinions, from neighbouring countries France and Germany.
The Berlin-based journalist
Géraldine Schwarz says that European identity is centered on western countries and excludes the eastern ones. However, the French philosopher
Raphaël Enthoven claims that there is no such thing as a 'European identity' or 'a European people' at all. The EU politicians should focus on EU citizens and civic values as a starting point instead of a sense of 'European identity'.
We will look ahead on the outcome of the European elections that are being held between 23-26 May throughout Europe. How important is the notion of a European
demos and its heterogeneity or homogeneity for Europe's future?
This event is moderated by
Sophie Derkzen.
About the speakers
Raphaël Enthoven is a well-known public philosopher, French professor of philosophy and writer. He currently presents two TV programs and used to present a daily radio show in France. He published many books, among them
Lectures de Proust (2011), about the work of writer Marcel Proust, and
Little Brother (2017), which is a collection of essays with philosophical reflections on everyday life. He is a passionate speaker on what it means to be European, and speaks out on issues such as European citizenship and identity regularly in French media.
Géraldine Schwarz is a French-German journalist, author and documentary filmmaker working in Berlin. She contributes regularly to
Le Monde, and created several TV documentaries. The Dutch translation of her book
Les Amnésiques (
De geheugenlozen), will be published in May by Atlas Contact. In this book, she tells the story of her French and German grandfathers, both of whom profited from or collaborated with the Vichy and Nazi regimes, respectively. The book is a plea for a confrontation with our past, in order to prevent the resurgence of right wing extremism in today's Europe.
Les Amnésiques received the European Book Prize in 2018.
This program is organized in cooperation with the
Institut Français des Pays-Bas, the Goethe-Institut Niederlande, and is supported by the European Cultural Foundation.
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