The European Union’s recognition of the cultural role of the Ventotene Manifesto first of all confirms its centrality in the struggle for democracy already during the dark times of the Second World War.
The intuition of Altiero Spinelli, Ernesto Rossi and Eugenio Colorni that the defeat of dictatorships would only be possible by overcoming the division of the world into absolute sovereignties and that of Europe into nation-states and conflicting mono-ethnic and mono-cultural homelands is dramatically relevant today in a continent torn apart once again by sovereignisms.
The 1941 Manifesto is European cultural heritage also because it has been brought to life by the heirs of Altiero Spinelli over the years in the action for the European Federation through a democratic constituent method that places the European Parliament at the centre and that will have to claim this role when it is elected in 2024 to reopen the path towards a United States of Europe by overcoming the obstacle of intergovernmental negotiation and confrontation between apparent national interests that have so far prevailed in all stages of European construction, as can be seen from the confederal nature of the Lisbon Treaty, which is the child of the convention method and diplomatic agreements.
Finally, the Manifesto is European cultural heritage because it has been enriched by the thousands of boys and girls who have participated in the Ventotene seminar since 1982 with the contribution of the island’s municipal administrations and the Lazio Region.
