Europeismo, Altiero Spinelli/Giuliano Amato

Europe lies at the centre of the world’s political and cultural debates, but it is also the key element in a major global economic and democratic crisis. How was the idea of Europe born? Treccani explores a fundamental concept that indicates the original aspects of the genesis of a place that is both geographical and cultural but which was originally above all a sensation and a way of interpreting existence: after all, Europe is the continent with the greatest wealth and the highest welfare quality. Altiero Spinelli’s historic publication traces the birth and expansion of an idea of shared political community based on European Citizenship: this was the centre of a vision aimed at superseding two tragic world wars generated by the blind rivalry of nations.

The concept of Europeanism, revisited in a contemporary perspective by the ex-Prime Minister Giuliano Amato, is a useful guide for identifying – via a critical counterpoint – the as yet unexplored resources and problems of an idea trying to become a community.