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Adopted text

European historical consciousness

TA-9-2024-0030 · P9_TA(2024)0030 · PE752.701

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Parliament adopts a resolution on European historical consciousness, calling for a critical, evidence-based approach to Europe's past. It asks member states to update history curricula towards European and global history, and to teach European integration and citizenship. It calls on the Commission and member states to protect freedom to teach, study and research, and to fight historical revisionism and denialism. It wants a shift from a top-down remembrance culture to a citizens-driven culture of remembering, and more support for Erasmus+ and CERV.

Key points

  1. Acknowledges that Europe's diverse and conflicting histories make political dealing with the past difficult and potentially dangerous.
  2. Considers a responsible, evidence-based and critical approach to history, focused on common European values, essential for any democratic body politic.
  3. Stresses the need for an honest assessment of the EU's 'politics of the past', acknowledging achievements and shortcomings.
  4. Expresses concern about competition and incompatibility between memory frames in Europe, including between Western and Eastern Europe, and acknowledges crimes committed by Nazi, fascist and communist regimes and under colonialism.
  5. Recognises the need for a broader and more holistic understanding of European history, including underrepresented groups and innovative teaching.
  6. Stresses moving from a top-down remembrance culture to a bottom-up, citizens-driven culture of remembering involving civil society.
  7. Calls on the Commission and member states to safeguard freedom to teach, study and research, including access to archives, and to use the rule of law mechanism against misused memory laws.
  8. Calls on member states to update curricula to focus on European and global history, multiple perspectives, and teaching students 'how to think' rather than 'what to think'.
  9. Calls for teaching of European history and integration and European citizenship education to become integral parts of national education systems, and for an 'EU manual' with common guidelines.
  10. Regrets the lack of a multicultural and gender-sensitive approach in history teaching and calls on member states to address marginalisation of women and underrepresented groups.
  11. Calls on the Commission and member states to strengthen media and digital literacy to counter disinformation, including Russian historical revisionism.
  12. Requests European institutions, member states, candidate countries, educational institutions and civil society to foster reconciliation, abstain from instrumentalising history, and fight revisionism and denialism.

Who is affected

  • Member states, which are asked to update national curricula and provide teacher training and materials.
  • The Commission, which is asked to safeguard academic freedoms and strengthen EU tools for historical consciousness.
  • Teachers and students, who should receive training and tools for fact-based history teaching.
  • Candidate and prospective candidate countries, which are asked to foster reconciliation and fight historical revisionism.

Legal basis: Article 165 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union