Letter
Our Europe: An appeal for unity, democracy, solidarity
On the occasion of 60 years since the signing of the Treaties of Rome, join our appeal for union.
On the occasion of 60 years since the signing of the Treaties of Rome, we come together, aware that we have to change Europe in order to save it from disintegration, from social and environmental disaster, and from authoritarian regression.
The hopes and expectations of a great common heritage, built on achievements and advances in the areas of rights and democracy, are unraveling along with the social state.
In recent years — because of unfair treaties, austerity, financial dominion, recession, job insecurity, and discrimination of women and young people — inequality and poverty have grown dramatically in Europe.
Today we are at the crossroads: between the salvation of human lives or that of finance and banks; full social security, or the gradual reduction of universal rights; peaceful coexistence, or war; democracy, or dictatorship. Mistrust, fear and insecurity are growing. These feelings multiply racism, reactionary nationalism, walls, borders and barbed wire.
Another Europe is necessary, urgent and possible, and we must act to build it. We must denounce the policies that jeopardize its existence; we must require that supranational democratic institutions actually express the popular mandate and have adequate resources; we must respect the rights enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights; and we must defend the good that we have built, propose alternatives and fight to achieve them, both in the Mediterranean and beyond the Union.
It takes a brave and innovative project of European unity to ensure for everyone a livable future, founded on democracy and freedom, rights and equality, effective recognition of the gender dimension, social and climate justice, dignity and work, solidarity and hospitality, peace and environmental sustainability.
We must be able to transform the “Italians, British, French first” mentality into “everyone first” — a Europe that is north and south, east and west, native and immigrant, men and women.
We begin from here, from Rome, in unity and solidarity, to create a coalition that, beyond our differences in our continent and throughout the world, will be up to the challenge we face.
We invite you to join this appeal, to promote and enter into this common framework of events and dates in the coming months in Italy and throughout Europe, starting in Rome on March 23-25, to mobilize initiatives, meetings, actions and interventions in the community and create a large, unified convergence.
First signatories: Arci; Legambiente; CGIL; Rete della Conoscenza; Unione degli Universitari; Transform Italia; A Sud; Acli; Acmos; ACT- Agire, costruire, trasformare; ActionAid; AEDH – Association européenne pour la défense des droits de l’Homme; AOI Associazione Ong Italiane; Arci Servizio Civile; Arcigay; Association Européenne pour la Défense des Droits de l’Homme ; Associazione Botteghe del Mondo; Associazione Callisto – Grecia; Associazione Nazionale per la Scuola della Repubblica; Associazione Per Un’Europa dei Popoli; Associazione Sì alle energie rinnovabili No al nucleare; Assopace Palestina ; Auser; Baobab Experience; Blockupy International ; Casa Internazionale delle Donne ; Centro Einstein di Studi Internazionali (CESI); Centro per la Riforma dello Stato; Centro Studi, formazione, comunicazione e progettazione sull’Unione Europea e la global governance; CEPES ; Cipsi; Città dell’Altra Economia – CAE; Cittadinanzattiva; Civil Society Europe ; Coalizione “Europe We Want”; Cobas; Comitato europeo New Deal 4 Europe; Comitato Nazionale LipScuola; Comitato Promotore Cremonese; Comitato verità e giustizia per i nuovi desaparecidos ; CommonGoodNetwork; Comunità Cristiana di Base Pinerolo ; Concord Europa; Concord Italia; Coordinamento Europeo Via Campesina; Cultura è libertà; DiEM25; DIP – dichiariamo illegale la povertà; Epohi quotidiano – Grecia; Euromed Rights Network; European Alternatives; European Citizen Action Service – ECAS; European Civic Forum; Fairwatch; FEF – Belgio; Fiom Cgil; FISH – Federazione Italiana Superamento Handicap; Fondazione Cercare Ancora; Fondazione Finanza Etica; Forum Italiano dei Movimenti per l’Acqua; Forum Italo Tunisino; FZS – freier zusammenschluss von studentInnenschaften; GENCTUR – Turkey ; Gioventù Federalista Europea; Greenpeace; IBO Italia; ICYE International Office ; il manifesto; Informagiovani; L’altra Europa con Tsipras; Libera; Link Coordinamento Universitario; Lunaria; Mani Tese; Movimento Consumatori; Movimento Difesa del Cittadino; Nicos Poulantzas Institute -Grecia; Noi Siamo Chiesa; ÖH – Österreichische Hochschülerinnen- und Hochschülerschaft; Osservatorio Aids; Parti communiste français; Rete degli Studenti Medi; Rete della Pace; Rete Romana di Solidarietà con il Popolo Palestinese ; Rifondazione Comunista – Sinistra Europea; Sbilanciamoci!; Sinistra Euromediterranea; Sinistra Italiana; SOLIDAR; Tavola della Pace; Transform Europe; UIL; Un Ponte Per..; UNEF – Union nationale des étudiants de France; UNEL (Union national des étudiant-e-s du Luxembourg); Unione degli Studenti; YAP – Youth Action for Peace Italia
Originally published at https://ilmanifesto.it/la-nostra-europa-unita-democratica-solidale/ on 2017-03-11