Whiteness and the European project - Hans Kundnai

Whiteness and the European project
European identity, which is today centred on the EU, is often imagined as being inclusive or even cosmopolitan. But from the medieval period onwards, Europe defined itself against a series of Others – above all, Islam. The ethnic/cultural elements of European identity, connected to Christianity and whiteness, did not suddenly disappear in 1945 but rather persisted and influenced what became the EU – which itself began as a colonial project, though this was subsequently written out of the story of European integration. Today, as the far right rises across Europe and the EU increasingly imagines itself as representing a threatened European civilisation that “can die”, as French president Emmanuel Macron put it, these ethnic/cultural elements of European identity may once again be becoming dominant. In this talk, Hans Kundnani will present his book Eurowhiteness and discuss how, since it was published in 2023, what he called the civilizational turn in the European project has gone even further.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

Get App

Host or Publisher Glasgow Centre for International Law and Security