Europe is living through one of its most difficult post war periods. Hope and the expectation of a better future are slowly giving way to concern and fear, in some cases even despair, about the future. Symbols of European unity —above all the euro— are under attack, while the European Parliament —an albeit weak symbol of democratic governance-- has been increasingly marginalized in the European Union´s decision-making process. Concurrently, the state’s role in providing social services to its citizens is being challenged. Voices that echo the past evoke xenophobic, even racist messages, and often gain widespread respectability.
In North America, the repeated deadlocks over major social and economic issues between President and Congress suggest that the United States is living through its own crisis. The banking system’s role, in both the explosion of the recent credit crisis and its possible resolution, evokes much controversy. Immigration, a foundation of the United States’ economic growth, is challenged by nativist voices, which are often colored by deeply rooted discourses on race. The concept of American exceptionalism, as widely accepted in the public consciousness as the concept of civilization in Europe, is defended and challenged with an intensity that hasn’t been seen since the United States’ defeat in Vietnam.
A diverse group of scholars and journalists will gather in Florence on April 23-24, 2012 to think comparatively about the European and North American crises. They will analyze the present situation and identify points of comparison and contrast between Europe and the United States: What are the nature and definition of the crises, their causes, and prospects for addressing them? What effect has this moment of economic and cultural disorientation had on the principles of democratic governance? How has the crisis impacted immigration policies and attitudes toward foreigners? Finally, does the present crisis color historians’ approaches to or interpretations of Europe’s past?
Program
Monday, April 23, 2012 NYU Florence, Villa La Pietra Via Bolognese 120, Florence
9:30 a.m. Introductions. Welcoming Comments Ellyn Toscano, NYU Florence Josep Borrell Fontelles, EUI Antony Molho, EUI and NYU
9:45-11:15 Session 1: The Nature of the Crisis Chair/Discussant: Josep Borrell Fontelles, EUI Presentations: Loukas Tsoukalis, Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy William Pfaff, Political Commentator and Author
11:15-11:45 Coffee Break
11:45-12:30 p.m. Discussion
12:45-14:15 Lunch
14:15-15:45 Session 2: Democracy at the Time of the Crisis Chair/Discussant: Sven Steinmo, EUI Presentations: Stefano Bartolini, EUI Nadia Urbinati, Columbia University
15:45-16:00 Break
17:30-19:30 Session 3: Historians and the Crisis — A Round Table Chair/Discussant: Stephen Anthony Smith, EUI Participants: Daria Bocharnikova, Doctoral Candidate in History, EUI Fedja Buric, Max Weber Fellow, EUI Serena Ferente, King’s College, London, EUI alumna Jannis Panagiotidis, Doctoral Candidate in History, EUI
Tuesday, April 24, 2012 European University Institute, Badia Fiesolana Via dei Roccettini 9, Florence
9:30-10:45 a.m. Session 4: The Challenge of Immigration at the Time of the Crisis Chair/Discussant: Nadia Urbinati, Columbia University Presentations: Luca Einaudi, Cambridge University George Borjas, Harvard University
10:45-11:15 Coffee Break
11:15-12:15 Discussion
12:15-13:15 Closing Remarks Antony Molho, EUI and NYU
