Against this backdrop, we concur with Jürgen Habermas, who posits the supranational regulation of globalisation and its subjection to superior social and ecological goals for humankind as the single most important challenge progressives will be facing throughout coming years, and even decades. The revival of the striving for a genuine political union in Europe must be at the heart of this struggle.
We will, otherwise, become the powerless witnesses of a global tragedy although important breakthroughs seemed so close just a minute ago. Shortly after global consensus could be reached on the United Nations sustainable development goals and the recent Paris climate change accord, these great promises of a better world could be undermined and made unachievable by the triumph of the enemies of global progress.
This is why we have to generate a new vision about the type of globalisation we, as progressives, stand for and fight for, and clearly define where political divides and choices lie. In the spirit of Habermas’ call for a democratic polarisation, we need to drive home the fact that our ideals are more sustainable and essentially better than those defended by the liberal and conservative apologists of a globalisation that has turned against ordinary people.
Many policy areas are concerned, from international trade to the regulation of the financial sector, from macroeconomic policy to social protection and labour standards, from the promotion of peace to the defence of human rights and the right to a decent life for all human beings on a preserved and protected planet. This will also be about regaining the political initiative and redefining the terms of the public and political debate.
Our yardstick should always and rigorously be whether our policies bring a better life to ordinary and hard working people, to the most vulnerable, to minorities and, most importantly, to the younger generations, a majority of whom still believe in a different world than the one promoted by nationalistic and nostalgic rhetoric. They are ready to fight for such a better world, as post-election protests in the US have movingly shown.
Trump’s wake-up call must trigger the dawn of a new era of progressive political influence across the globe, not the end of our world. Let us seize this moment and live up to it. We still can.
Read more: Trump: The Final Wake-Up Call
We will, otherwise, become the powerless witnesses of a global tragedy although important breakthroughs seemed so close just a minute ago. Shortly after global consensus could be reached on the United Nations sustainable development goals and the recent Paris climate change accord, these great promises of a better world could be undermined and made unachievable by the triumph of the enemies of global progress.
This is why we have to generate a new vision about the type of globalisation we, as progressives, stand for and fight for, and clearly define where political divides and choices lie. In the spirit of Habermas’ call for a democratic polarisation, we need to drive home the fact that our ideals are more sustainable and essentially better than those defended by the liberal and conservative apologists of a globalisation that has turned against ordinary people.
Many policy areas are concerned, from international trade to the regulation of the financial sector, from macroeconomic policy to social protection and labour standards, from the promotion of peace to the defence of human rights and the right to a decent life for all human beings on a preserved and protected planet. This will also be about regaining the political initiative and redefining the terms of the public and political debate.
Our yardstick should always and rigorously be whether our policies bring a better life to ordinary and hard working people, to the most vulnerable, to minorities and, most importantly, to the younger generations, a majority of whom still believe in a different world than the one promoted by nationalistic and nostalgic rhetoric. They are ready to fight for such a better world, as post-election protests in the US have movingly shown.
Trump’s wake-up call must trigger the dawn of a new era of progressive political influence across the globe, not the end of our world. Let us seize this moment and live up to it. We still can.
Read more: Trump: The Final Wake-Up Call
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