The Culture and Politics of Identity: Impression 3

The following is third in a series of five posts on my impressions about the culture and politics of identity while living in Europe.  None of them are complete thoughts.  Instead, they are reactions I had to situations and events during my last two weeks in the UK and France.


Impression 3: Should We Stay or Should We Go?, Part II

 
Last year, 2012, I was invited to do some grant reviews for the EU.  It was a very intense week of work, but I had lots of fun meeting colleagues from all over the world.  At one point, during a quick lunch out, I was sitting around a very large table with physicists, mathematicians and computer scientists, from as many different places as Spain, Italy, Poland, Lithuania, France, Israel, the Netherlands and the UK.

There was also one other person at the table from the states--who, unfortunately, every time he opened his mouth, seemed to say the wrong thing, albeit well intentioned.  And, he saw himself a comedian, who unfortunately, as you will see below, had the worst sense of timing.

Anyway, as a sociologist, this was a rare opportunity, as I could get a live, international discussion going about global politics, the EU, and the challenges these scholars saw in their respective countries. Frustratingly, no sooner would I get them on a topic when they would somehow always bring it back to the states, usually by asking me about some stupid thing some American had done.

Suddenly, about half way through the conversation,  it dawned on me: these people were very uncomfortable discussing politics, their country, or the EU in front of the others; it was something they were not used to doing.  Hence, their focus on my home, something about which they could all agree and complain.

Finally, after a bit of prodding, and me and my fellow American openly critiquing our country, some headway was made.  The attention of the group was focused on the financial imbalance across countries in the EU.  "Yeah," said the German.  "It see it as a problem.  In Berlin, for example, many of us do not even but clothing dryers, as they are a misuse of money.  More austerity is needed..." 
"Do you think any states should leave the EU," asked the Frenchman?
The Polish scholar interrupted "I want a new clothing dryer."
Everyone laughed. Then I saw it, out of the corner of my eye.  My fellow American was going to use this moment of laughing to go for a joke.
"Heck," he said.  "Now, what you all need to do is learn from us.  See, we got a whole bunch of moocher states we take care of.  Places like..."
Nooooo, I thought to myself, stop, don't say it...
At this point, the colloquialisms of my fellow American and the speed at which he was speaking English were becoming lost in translation.  So, the Lithuanian interrupted, "What is a moocher state?"
"Well, I'll tell ya.  A moocher state is one that takes huge amounts of money from our federal government and gives almost nothing back in return..."
"I see."
"And, these states are the same republican ones that complain we should get rid of the federal government.  Places like dot, dot, dot."
I looked over at the Brit, who seemed to be wondering why they are our closest ally.
At this point in the conversation I got up, went to the bar and ordered a second scotch, as none of the Europeans at the table laughed.  Upon returning, I, once again, found myself apologizing to foreigners for the stupidity of a fellow American...



                                                            (timeline of the EU's development by country)
But, this bit of humor, however badly, goes to my point.  As an American, I am used to taking it "square in the chin" all the time.  For those who travel abroad regularly, sometimes it feels as if it is "open season" on the states.  On occasion I just want to scream, "Hey, the states is a really big place, over 300 million people, spread out across a very large continent.  I am not its representative.  Give me a break."  I cannot tell you how many times I have traveled abroad, met someone for a few seconds, only to get it, right between the eyes, about some stupid thing done in the name of my home country.  If I, however, were to say something similar to them, that would most likely be the end of the conversation.  In short, American academics, at least the ones I am around, have a rather tough skin and are used to people telling them what they think of our country.  But, it does not work so easily the other way.  It is as if many Europeans still struggle to openly talk about their respective countries or what is happening with the EU.

Even during my sabbatical, I would see it happen. When a British colleague was around, the German or French colleague was careful to avoid politics about the UK.  At the same time, however, all of them were comfortable talking about another country. 

Now, do not get me wrong here.  Nuance and complexity are always necessary, as I met lots of scholars open to having such "international"conversations.  But, they were, for the most part, in the minority.

And so, it seems, despite all the EU has accomplished, it has not, by any means, brought about a United States of Europe, or any such thing.  National and regional identities and the politics of culture are still very strong.  And, I think, such things need to be addressed or the EU (and its very important political, social and human rights policies) is in serious trouble, particularly to the forces of capital and corporation.

My views are similar to those of Jürgen Habermas, the famous German intellectual, philosopher and sociologist.  Click here, for example, for a summary of his recent book on the crisis of the EU and its future.  The title of the book, fair enough, is The Crisis of the European Union. In reviewing the book, Cronin does a good job of summarizing Habermas's view on getting past cultural identity to make the EU work.  He states:

While critics have typically complained that the EU does not have the same legitimacy as nation-states because there is no such thing as a European “people,” Habermas argues that the ethical and political self-understanding of citizens in a democratic community needn’t be rooted in a historical or cultural essence. Simply put, citizens do not have to “feel” that they belong together culturally or ethnically to act in a democratic manner and experience solidarity with their neighbors, especially beyond their borders. It is enough that they share a common set of ethical and civic values and participate in a set of institutions that enable them to communicate and debate.

I think that is very well said.  But, will people listen in time?


I open up the newspapers in London, as we get ready to leave for Paris; Christmas is just two days away.  And the topic dominating the papers?  While Scotland is considering seceding from the UK; the UK, in turn, is considering seceding from the European Union.

As I go through the newspaper, I find myself singing a song by Peter Gabriel, called Not One of Us.  In particular, I keep repeating the following four lines:


There's safety in numbers
When you learn to divide
How can we be in
If there is no outside

We Are the World

A few days later, now in France (which I will post about next), I think more about what I read in the papers my last day in the UK.  I cannot leave it there.  I am, ultimately, an optimist.

And, I have to say, despite the problems the EU faces, during my time in the UK, Germany, and France I have seen a lot of love, a lot of kindness, and a lot of care.  In fact, the positive karma of my trip has been, overall, so overwhelmingly positive, and the people so great, that I struggled daily to keep the same level of good karma going back out toward others.  As the rock band Rush says, "Our hope will depend on a world without end, whatever the hopeless may say."  Long live Europe!

My final point, therefore, is best expressed in the words of We are the World, performed by USA for Africa and written by Lionel Richie and Michael Jackson.  Our differences and similarities are all a function of the fact that we are all one big family.