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The European Balcony Project

by European Democracy Lab e.V.

Berlin, Vienna, and Paris

From balconies in theatres all over Europe, artists and citizens will proclaim the European Republic, discuss, and pave the way for the emancipatory claim of citizens’ equality beyond the nation state

EUR 26’286

105% of EUR 25’000

105 %
This is how it works

The «all or nothing» principle applies: The project only receives the funds if the funding target is reached or exceeded.

262 backers

Successfully concluded on 20/5/2018

This is what it's all about.

Robert Menasse, Milo Rau and Ulrike Guérot will write a manifesto that will be read by artists from across Europe at the same time. It is about the development of a pan-European statehood that ensures European public welfare and the use of European public goods. Six months before the next elections to the European Parliament, we want to identify new ways of shaping European democracy and encourage citizens to participate. The idea of ​​a free, equal community of values ​​must not only be based in the ivory tower of acadamics, but must be carried out in the public space. Each person is hereby called to take sides in a socially and legally united Europe beyond the nations.

My project is special because ...

From balconies in theatres all over Europe, artists and citizens will proclaim the European Republic and read the manifesto, written by Ulrike Guérot, Robert Menasse and Milo Rau, to pave the way for the emancipatory claim of citizens’ equality beyond the nation state! The proclamation of the European Republic will be on 10th of November at the same time throughout Europe, in big and small towns, capitals and regions, to decentralize the European idea. The project includes events, talks, panels and artistic interventions from the 9th to 11th of November 2018 in theatres across Europe, with the goal of organizing citizens’ debates to frame and accompany the proclamation of the European Republic.

This intervention will empower the European citizens and set out for their normative unity. With this, we want to accomplish Europe’s old mantra, that Europe is «unity in diversity». The «European Republic» is only the starting point of achieving a state of affairs that has already been brought to global realization in the first sentence of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1789, that «all human beings are born free and equal in their rights». This is Europe’s cultural and ideological heritage and it is therefore Europe’s political task to make this a reality in the 21st century.

We wish to see the participation of artists of all genres in the unified proclamation of the European Republic as an artistic intervention, loud and prominent to society. To this end, flyers containing the manifesto of the European Republic should be distributed and read from as many balconies in Europe as possible. The balconies are also populated with visuals, literary texts and theatrical inserts, all of which follow a unifying message. This intervention should be carried out by a large media public and transmitted on all media channels.

The manifesto contains i.a. the following requirements:

• Equal rights for all European citizens • Discontinuation of the nation state level and the transfer of the Sovereignty of the nation states onto the citizens • Transnational democracy

Following the artistic intervention involving a large number of theaters, there is a catalog on action presented at the 2019 Book Fair by Robert Menasse. On the day of the action, all interested citizens can register on the website as citizens of the European Republic.

This is what I need backing for.

The money is spent for the coordination of all participating countries and persons as well as a fee for the participating artists of all genres and mediums. In addition, the money is spent on the translations of the manifesto into a minimum of 10 languages. Part of the money will also go to the creation of the website as well as to the publication of a catalog containing images and statements of citizens and the manifesto.