Can the European Union survive — and should it? Does a united Europe represent the transcendence of the continent’s bloody twentieth century, or its continuation by other means? Has a project begun in a spirit of liberty, equality, and fraternity turned authoritarian, hierarchical, and antagonistic? If the union is as bad as its critics claim, why does it remain so popular in many member nations? And what does all of this mean for the United States?
On Thursday, September 26, Harper’s Magazine hosted Can the European Union Hold?, a public forum at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The panelists were James K. Galbraith, from the University of Texas, Austin; Ulrike Guérot, from the European Council on Foreign Relations; John N. Gray, Emeritus Professor at the London School of Economics; Christiane Lemke, Max Weber Chair in German and European Studies at New York University; and Emmanuel Todd, a social anthropologist at the National Institute of Demographic Studies in Paris.
A print version of the forum, moderated by Harper’s columnist Jeff Madrick, will appear in the February 2014 issue of the magazine.
