WE, CITIZENS OF EUROPE, ...
A new writers' project by deBuren and institution Perdu
deBuren and Perdu gladly invite all European citizens to write a preamble for Europe.
The State Commission of the Dutch Cabinet advises no later than 1 October 2010 on the question whether the constitution of the Netherlands should be changed. One of the core questions is whether a preamble is necessary and what it must entail. A preamble is an introductory text that precedes a law or treaty. A preamble points out the philosophy and values upon which laws are founded. The most famous preamble is the one of the US and begins with ‘We the People of the United States, …’.
deBuren and Perdu are convinced that we, Citizens of Europe, don’t have to wait for the decision of the State Commission. We asked the young authors Andries Zoutendijk, Korneel de Rynck, Xavier Roelens and Vicky Franken to write a European preamble. Godfather of the project is European Parliamentarian Saïd El Khadraouï. The preambles are bundled in a unique publication that will be presented at the end of September 2010 at Perdu in Amsterdam.
Do it yourself!
Which values are fundamental for the Europe of the future according to you? On which philosophies do we want to found our laws?
There are only a few formal requests: all genres are welcome (poems, pamphlets, songs), as long as you bear in mind a maximum of 1500 words and as long as the text begins with the evoking words ‘We, citizens of Europe, …’. The best preamble will be included in the bundle.
To participate in this competition, you have to send your preamble before 31 March 2010 to sarah@deburen.eu. Keep an eye on our website for more up-to-date information.
Videos
React
Fields marked with a star are required.
Coming The books
Soon at deBuren