Crises and left solutions
An opinion pieceThe ruling on 15 April 2021 by Germany's Federal Constitutional Court on the rent cap imposed by the Berlin state government is a major blow for the city's Senate, and especially of course for the many Berlin tenants affected. It will also, naturally, have a very sobering effect outside Berlin and Germany, on initiatives, parties and progressive city governments that looked to the flagship Berlin project as a model to be implemented in other European cities. In Berlin as in Paris, Munich, Barcelona, ...
read more "Ruling against Berlin’s rent cap – far from the end of the story"
read more "Ruling against Berlin’s rent cap – far from the end of the story"
The health and social crisis is worsening in Italy. The government is threatening a new lockdown, but supporting measures for workers remain insufficient. Meanwhile, social protests are spreading all over the country and caused a public debate going far beyond national borders.
At the beginning of July of this year the Italian interior minister, Luciana Lamorgese, in an interview on Italian state TV, expressed fears that the country was headed towards crisis: “I think there’s a real risk of a new 'hot autumn' because in September we will start to see ...
read more "Social protests in times of pandemic"
read more "Social protests in times of pandemic"
Call for contributions to edited volume “The Crisis and Future of Representative Democracy”Background & objectives
Democracy is in jeopardy. The rise and rise of authoritarian populism as well as the accompanying polarisation of politics and sustained attacks on the fundamental norms and foundations of liberal democracy in Europe and elsewhere have made that clear. Yet these symptoms are also reflective of a much longer decline of institutions in contemporary liberal representative democracies. Low levels of ...
read more "“Closer to the people? On (direct) democracy in the age of digitalisation”"
read more "“Closer to the people? On (direct) democracy in the age of digitalisation”"
Interviews with Carmen San José, Martin Schirdewan and Harald WeinbergFor years, the neoliberal policies followed by the European Union and EU Member States have imposed privatisations and cost-cutting measures on health care systems, causing a significant deterioration in the essential services such systems provide. In southern Europe in particular, the deterioration has been especially pronounced in recent years, with massive cuts in spending on social policies imposed on large segment of society by the ruling classes.
The coronavirus crisis is not only exacerbating ...
read more "Austerity and Health"
read more "Austerity and Health"
EU Relentlessly targeted members’ health spending over past decadeAbstract
A decade of austerity imposed by the European Union institutions and EU Member State governments has caused significant deterioration in healthcare services across the EU. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the EU’s healthcare and public sectors to be ill-equipped to respond to the outbreak in accordance with international best practice. The Stability and Growth Pact and the associated European Semester process have been the central tools used to enforce austerity across the EU since the 2008 ...
read more "Austerity kills"
read more "Austerity kills"
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the EU’s healthcare and public sectors to be ill-equipped to respond to the outbreak in accordance with international best practice. A decade of austerity imposed by the European Union institutions and EU Member State governments has caused significant deterioration in healthcare services across the EU. The Stability and Growth Pact has been the central tool used to enforce austerity across the EU since the 2008 financial crisis. Member States’ spending on healthcare provision has been targeted for reduction ...
read more "The EU’s role in attacking healthcare"
read more "The EU’s role in attacking healthcare"
Edited volume “The Crisis and Future of Representative Democracy”Background & objectives
Democracy is in jeopardy. The rise and rise of authoritarian populism as well as the accompanying polarisation of politics and sustained attacks on the fundamental norms and foundations of liberal democracy in Europe and elsewhere have made that clear. Yet these symptoms are also reflective of a much longer decline of institutions in contemporary liberal representative democracies. Low levels of electoral participation, low ...
read more "Call for contributions: the relationship of liberal democracy and racism"
read more "Call for contributions: the relationship of liberal democracy and racism"
Report on European citizens' initiativesThe Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung (RLS) is an internationally operating, left, non-profit organisation for civic education affiliated with Germany’s 'Die Linke' (Left Party). Active since 1990, the foundation undertakes analysis of social and political processes and developments worldwide. We are committed to peace, democracy, social justice and democratic socialism based on international solidarity. The RLS Brussels Office is a think tank that addresses European and international issues from a left-wing perspective and promotes political ...
read more "Call for Authors"
read more "Call for Authors"
A plea for an inclusive and differentiating pan-European culture of remembranceHow many times have you heard someone say "Europe has been at peace since 1945" or "There has been no war in Europe since 1945"? The Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s, which left over 130,000 people dead and created millions of displaced persons and refugees, are quickly forgotten (not to mention the war that has been under way in Eastern Ukraine since 2014). When challenged about this, people's response tends to be: "Oh well, I was of course referring to the EU."
...
read more "1945 versus 1995, Europe versus the Balkans?"
read more "1945 versus 1995, Europe versus the Balkans?"
Antifascist struggles back then and todaySpeaker:
Marc Botenga, Member of the European Parliament for PTB, Belgium
Martina Renner, Member of the Bundestag for Die Linke, Germany
Gerd-Rainer Horn, Professor of political History at Sciences Po Paris, France
Our speakers will discuss the following questions:
1. Political memory in Europe: what are the challenges facing the Left in Europe today?
2. How can we shape the memory of fascism in Europe as Leftist forces?
3. What can we learn from the antifascist struggles of the post-war period for our ...
read more "75 years since liberation"
read more "75 years since liberation"