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Blog
Young people embrace a united Europe
One idea which has been flying around a lot in the last few years is that of the ‘digital native’. Young people who have grown up in the age of computers and smartphones, and who take any new technology in their stride. But I think that youth today are also intuitively comfortable with another important concept – that of a united Europe.
Those of us fortunate enough to be born in the twilight years of intra-European cooperation see the impact of such a union in every part of our lives. We have done Erasmus exchanges on the continent, we enjoy delicious food from all parts of Europe, and go on holiday there to escape the terrible British weather. We are entrepreneurs trading with the huge European market, artists collaborating with European talent, and so much more. Europe is not simply a geographical or political region; it is something we live and breathe every day.
And the fact of the matter is that this unprecedented integration, accessibility and teamwork is in large part due to the European Union. Visas and work permits are a thing of the past – those wanting to see the Colosseum or join a Dutch startup can do so with less hassle than ever, all thanks to the Treaty of Rome. Looking to import a BMW, Belgian beer or sell British-made products in Europe? All possible with no paperwork due to EU regulation.
Aside from these more general benefits, it is also important to remember the value of the EU closer to home. In my borough of Islington alone, the examples are endless – £15,000 to Canonbury Primary School to improve language skills, £380,000 to help the Shadow Robot Company innovate high-tech surgical tools, or even £160,000 to fund Aedas Architects’ development of more terrorist-proof buildings.
The value of this investment in our local communities, combined with the benefits of the European single market, is far greater than what we contribute to the EU. It’s not for nothing that all the economists think leaving this arrangement is madness!
But no matter the benefits they derive from European integration, many young people today are not doing battle for their right to maintain this, or shape how it will look in the future. British youth are overwhelmingly against Brexit, but only 19% of them voted for an MEP in 2014. How can this be? Do we not want our voices to be heard?
Democratic participation is increasingly important today, as our hard-won freedoms and rights come under threat from an onslaught of misinformation and lies. A golden opportunity to take action is coming up soon, with the European elections on May 26 looming ever closer. We must seize this chance with both hands; as if we don’t fight for our own future, there definitely won’t be anyone else to do it for us.
Ian Sowden 19 years old. He is standing as an independent candidate MEP in the 2019 European Parliament election.
- Photo of Sarajevo International University from Storyblocks
Copyright protection for EU citizens
Are the EU intending to ban memes, as had been claimed with the new draft copyright directive? The answer is a resounding no. It’s about as close to the truth as the now infamous myth that the EU was banning bent bananas!
Nearly 10% of the working population in the EU are employed in the arts or media. It’s a major employer and these creative people are seeing the large internet platforms like Facebook, YouTube and others using their material without paying for it.
In reality it is the EU protecting EU citizens from the abuses of major corporations!
The draft directive intends to make large internet platforms like Facebook, YouTube etc to pay creators of content such as artists, musicians, news houses and their journalists what is genuinely owed to them. Performers need more than just a stage now to make a living.
The expectation is that the draft directive will push the online platforms to finally roll out a policy to fairly remunerate all those from whose work they make their money. It is therefore entirely reasonable to introduce regulation to social media. It will not target the ordinary user.
The goal to be achieved by this Directive is not to ban memes as has been wrongly reported in order to make the EU look bad. The goal and rather boring reason but very important reason is to stop online platforms from earning money from content created by other people without fairly compensating them.
There is no requirement to have in place ‘upload filters’ which are currently already being used. If these become abused as a result of the Directive it will be the fault of the platform providers. The parody clause will protect our rights such as being able to share memes and GIFs in our typical everyday situations. The platform providers will have to put in place effective complaint procedures that we can use to complain and challenge a decision to take down a meme.
You need only go to the draft text at Article 17 (formally the infamous Article 13) paragraph 7 which requires Member States of the EU to ensure that users i.e. us can rely on the already existing exceptions and limitation originally found in an older Directive (2001/29/EC) which allows for user generated content for the purposes of for example caricature, parody or pastiche.
Nor is it about censorship! Censorship is not the goal of this legislation. Companies must pay for the material they use to make a profit from; which is entirely reasonable.
‘All this means that users will have the right to post parodies and criticize and quote from others’ content, and that platforms cannot unduly prevent this. If they do—for instance, if they overblock—they might find themselves in a position in which they are financially liable toward users for infringing their rights. In this sense, the expression “censorship machine” seems hardly to capture the essence of what is now Article 17 of the directive: Users will have rights that they could enforce against platforms that would unduly “censor” their speech.’
Is this just the EU’s reaction to Brexit?
Although this directive predates Brexit, that event and other events around the EU have highlighted the need for this directive.
The spread of misinformation did undoubtedly contribute to the UK vote to leave the EU. Had this directive been in place the result might have been different. The negative reporting (a lot of it online, like on YouTube) about the EU has been fuelled further with the controversy of this Copyright Directive. It is not perfect but when you look into the detail it is very easy to see that the EU possesses no malice intent towards us the citizens of the EU like many would like you to believe. When presented with the facts – the real news finds its way. This will protect EU citizens rather than make their life more difficult.
Further reading:
- http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20190111IPR23225/questions-and-answers-on-issues-about-the-digital-copyright-directive
- http://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/A-8-2018-0245-AM-271-271_EN.pdf?redirect
- https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex%3A32001L0029
- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-5865137/EU-approves-copyright-rules-kill-memes-destroy-internet-know-it.html
- https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/PE-51-2019-INIT/en/pdf
- https://slate.com/technology/2019/04/eu-copyright-directive-article-13-wreck-internet.html
Joel Baccas can be contacted here. Images used under license from Storyblocks.
Letter from London
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Europe
When I was 14 the Maastricht Treaty was signed. At 19 the Treaty of Amsterdam. To me this meant freedom.
Just as I was coming of age I gained freedom to travel, to live, work and study anywhere in Europe. It presented a huge opportunity and I was itching to go! The future was gloriously full of people and places to explore and to discover.
When I finished school I spent my savings on an Interail ticket and travelled throughout borderless Europe. I saved money by sleeping on trains and eating the local produce from markets and street stalls as I went. I saw Paris, Rome, Prague, Athens, Venice, Copenhagen and Budapest! I met their people and I absorbed the experience into my coming of age. These were my people. This is where I belong: Europe.
The following year I started university at the London School of Economics: European Studies. I immersed myself in the history, philosophy, economics, poetry and literature of 20th century Europe, learning to understand and appreciate how we got to where we are.
I spent a year in Berlin, attending university to learn about the city and the country and their restitution as a thriving centre of European culture, economics and leadership. What struck me was how at home I felt. Berlin and London: two great world cities.
But this was Berlin ten years after the fall of the wall. Still grimy and still torn. We were coming together, learning from each other, accommodating each other and adapting to a bigger Europe with a future that promised freedom. I lived in the former west and studied in the former east. This was the promise of Europe.
Over the next two decades I worked in London, Edinburgh and Brussels; in Amsterdam, Athens and Ljubljana. I have dedicated my career to informing and teaching, guiding and supporting people to engage as citizens, especially young people who are our future. I have managed the organisation supporting citizenship education in England and worked with outreach for the European Parliament in the UK, teaching teachers and youngsters about its work. I’ve been a democracy consultant to the EU and worked to engage British citizens with European policy-making.
As a society and as a geopolitical entity we need people to take responsibility for one another and for the future of our local areas and national and global issues. Climate change effects all of us. Human trafficking and exploitation are a blight on all our lives. These are issues we need international cooperation to combat. Starting with a cooperation between our nearest neighbours puts us in a more powerful place. As citizens we have the power to influence not only a local and a national administration, but also the whole of Europe. We have strength in numbers and strength in our influence beyond our collective borders.
There have been many challenges along the way. The EU has tried to progress and advance. It has always had its opponents and its saboteurs. It has made mistakes – sometimes big mistakes: but somehow it has found a way forward. It has managed to negotiate accord between now 28 prime ministers and presidents; 28 national parliaments; 751 MEPs and the European Commission. This is no mean feat. I know because I’ve worked for the European Parliament and seen first hand how it operates. Nevertheless, the EU has persisted.
I value my European citizenship more than ever…
We stand on the eve of a valued member of this community leaving: and I value my European citizenship more than ever. I have the freedom not only of the UK, but the freedoms of the 28. My local shops are full of European produce of which my parents and grandparents could only dream. We have had peace in the countries of the European Union since 1945 and have witnessed the revival of Europe as a global power. We are a power that walks with kings and holds it head up high on the global arena with China, America and the likes of Google. This is something worth fighting for!
That’s why I believe that my country’s place is firmly in the EU. Working together and supporting each other we are strongest. I will fight to keep us in and keep us contributing. To other European citizens: please be patient with us while we try to resolve our internal problems. Our place is with the rest of the EU and I will be doing everything I can to keep us there. I am a Londoner, a Brit, a European. We are all Europeans.
With very best regards from London,
Millicent
Millicent Scott Brooks is an English and Citizenship teacher and an expert in EU affairs. She is an active campaigner for Britain to remain in the EU and has stood for the UK Parliament as a Liberal Democrat candidate. Millicent speaks English, German, French and Norwegian and lives in west London with her husband, baby daughter and Pushkin the cat.
Photo from Lycabettus in Athens (Attica, Greece) by A.Savin CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo of the Parliament’s hemicycle during a plenary session in Strasbourg by Diliff CC BY-SA 3.0
The Palace of Westminster, Big Ben and Westminster Bridge by Diliff CC BY-SA 2.5
Other photos copyright Storyblocks, used under license.
EU Citizens App
It has been argued that the EU has not been great at explaining EU citizenship to EU citizens! The last year or so has introduced new initiatives to try to rectify this and the latest of those is a Citizens App.
The app is available in 24 languages and can be downloaded from the Apple Store for iOS devices and from Google Play for Android devices.
The Citizens’ App:
- gives you information on topics and locations of interest to you and updates you on their progress;
- is searchable, shareable, personalisable and rankable;
- informs you about events taking place near you; adds your favourites to your personal calendar; shows you the best route via your favourite maps application;
- provides multimedia content such as videos, podcasts and slideshows;
- lets you keep the same settings and bookmarks across all your devices.
Zoom in on the map view to find the EU involvement in the area you live… or if traveling to find EU sponsored events the region of your holiday.
EUropeans: Lapland, je t’aime!
From France to Finland. Passionate about nature, Corentin changed his city life to work as a nature guide in Lapland.
For millions of Europeans moving for work, study or love has never been easier.
From France to Finland. Passionate about nature, Corentin changed his city life to work as a nature guide in Lapland. For millions of Europeans moving for work, study or love has never been easier. (There are English subtitles if you don’t speak French)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiacD7K8Pso