I have been working a lot on European identity
as a means to create a more integrated and successful Europe. It has become
quite fashionable in this European policy environment to state one’s European
identity and how European one feels. I left Germany more than six years ago,
lived in four European countries for at least a year and have no immediate
plans to return. I feel I could justify saying I am European as well. Somehow I
have always been a bit reluctant to do so. Leaving and going abroad had much to
do with developing as a person and questioning my background and identity.
Replacing my old identity with a new, some might say better, and more
sophisticated, European identity doesn’t make much sense to me. My goal has
always been to live with less identification – may it be with concepts or with
material things.
I still have to give some (personal) credit to
the concept of European identity. Mainly because European identity is not a
very strong concept of identity. It is hardly well-defined. I am always
surprised when Americans say “oh this is so European”. What do they actually
mean? Few people would go as far as defending themselves because they are from
Europe. Most people do defend their national identities – some with great
vigour. This is why European identity has always been appealing to me: It is
quite loose, almost like not having an identity. A loose and not well-defined
identity will, however, not work for many people. Identity is always about
separation from others and if it is not clear how the separation works, it
doesn’t serve too well as an identity.
Politicians, especially the populist ones, know
very well how to use different identities to their advantage. It is us against
them. The argument would even go that our modern nation states are not feasible
without national identities. This is why creating a European identity has
received increased attention. It seems quite obvious that we cannot build a properly
working federal Europe without a widely accepted and felt European identity. As
the world and its people are today, I have to agree. A united Europe is better than a fragmented one. We have come a long way to
create peace and mutual understanding between formerly bitter enemies. We have
still some way to go to achieve a completely integrated and federal Europe. If
we ever succeed getting there, it would be sad if it was a merely identity
driven process. Take the United States; they have a stronger national identity
than many single European member states. Merely replacing one strong national
identity with another one will not make the world a better place. It will just
create new separation and new enemies. Creating a united Europe that moves
beyond identity would be the real achievement for humanity. Sadly, this remains
quite a utopian idea today.
