Whose Sovereignty?

In the face of Russian aggression and America's apparent retreat from its protective role, strengthening European integration has become essential and federalization appears increasingly necessary. In this carefully argued case for a federal Europe, Céline Spector proposes that national sovereignty has become increasingly untenable as mechanisms perpetuating fiscal, social, and environmental inequities transcend borders. The concept of the sovereign people has become symbolic within nation-states but is devoid of substantive political force. Rather than lamenting the decline of direct democracy, Spector advocates for a democratized European Union that could redefine popular sovereignty and protect human rights. The transformation of state sovereignty need not signal democracy's end or politics' subordination to law. Instead, it could facilitate new forms of political community at the European level and enable a reconceptualization of popular sovereignty beyond the nation-state.