Your new post is loading...
Where did the idea of free movement of people come from? The precursor to the EU was formed as European leaders came together in the wake of the Second World War, wanting to prevent another catastrophic war. The idea was that allowing people to move across the continent - from countries where there were no jobs to countries where there were labour shortages - would not only boost European growth, but would help prevent war by getting people to mix more across borders.
"The founding fathers of the European Community wanted it to be a construct that also had a political integration and for that you needed people to move because the minute people crossed boundaries and borders, you had deeper integration… So it was both a social as well as an economic aim.
Tags: Europe, supranationalism, economic, mobility, political, states, migration.
Via Dean Haakenson
Immigration is a major source of tension within Europe. The influx of immigrants into Europe has led to a nativist backlash in many nations. The free movement of people is a bedrock principle of the European Union. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the leaders of Europe hoped that the open borders policy would prevent another costly war by allowing people to move to were there were jobs were located. The mixing of cultures would also prevent war. People would develop an understanding of other cultures, which would make the possibility of war more remote. The leaders did not account for the strong nativist strand that often runs through many nations. The UK is threating to withdraw from the EU over this immigration issue. While immigration on the United States gets much of the attention, a more serous crises is actually occurring in Europe.