How does
Nationalism
13-6-2021
Affect
Migration?
Contemporary European Politics
word count: 2401
, How does Nationalism Affect Migration?
How does Nationalism Affect Migration?
On the 14th of June 1985, a treaty was signed, which prompted most European nations to
abolish their borders; as a result, the Schengen Area was formed. Five European Union
member states firstly signed the Agreement in Luxembourg. In 1999, the Schengen
Agreement was incorporated by the Treaty of Amsterdam in the framework of the European
Union (The Schengen Agreement, 2021, paras. 1, 9). Nowadays, the Schengen area covers all
27 European Union countries plus an additional four non-European Union countries. Due to
the Schengen Agreement, citizens from one country in the Schengen Area can move to
another country within this area without being subjected to border controls (EUR-Lex, 2020,
para. 6).
Migration causes many issues in Europe and the European Union. The fact is that the influx
of migration has increased and thus has become a more frequent occurrence. However,
more and more countries and political parties in the European Union are following the ideals
of nationalism, especially in the area of migration (Postelnicescu, 2016, p. 204). Examples are
Poland, Hungary, the French National Rally Party, Dutch Freedom Party and the Swiss
People’s Party. Furthermore, many of these countries and parties also have anti-immigrant
policies in place. Brzozowski (2020) writes that on the 23rd of September 2020, the
European Commission strongly suggested that all European Union nations needed to share
the responsibility for refugees and migrants through a mandatory solidarity system. A new
proposal needed to be made in order to balance the positions of the Eastern and Southern
member states. Member states would be required to welcome asylum seekers, return those
who do not get asylum and provide financial aid (paras. 2-3). However, some eastern
European Countries, also known as the Visegrad Four, and of which most follow ideals of
nationalism, rejected this new proposal for dealing with migrants, as the measures were not
severe enough (Brzozowski, 2020, para. 1). This essay will investigate the following question:
How does nationalism affect migration?
In her article, Greenfeld (2011) writes that nationalism arose in Western European England
in the sixteenth century (p. 5). According to author Leah Greenfeld, “its emergence coincided
with the dawning of the European Age in History” (Greenfeld, 2011, p .5). This means that,
during the ascent of Western Europe and societies of those western European countries, the
1
Nationalism
13-6-2021
Affect
Migration?
Contemporary European Politics
word count: 2401
, How does Nationalism Affect Migration?
How does Nationalism Affect Migration?
On the 14th of June 1985, a treaty was signed, which prompted most European nations to
abolish their borders; as a result, the Schengen Area was formed. Five European Union
member states firstly signed the Agreement in Luxembourg. In 1999, the Schengen
Agreement was incorporated by the Treaty of Amsterdam in the framework of the European
Union (The Schengen Agreement, 2021, paras. 1, 9). Nowadays, the Schengen area covers all
27 European Union countries plus an additional four non-European Union countries. Due to
the Schengen Agreement, citizens from one country in the Schengen Area can move to
another country within this area without being subjected to border controls (EUR-Lex, 2020,
para. 6).
Migration causes many issues in Europe and the European Union. The fact is that the influx
of migration has increased and thus has become a more frequent occurrence. However,
more and more countries and political parties in the European Union are following the ideals
of nationalism, especially in the area of migration (Postelnicescu, 2016, p. 204). Examples are
Poland, Hungary, the French National Rally Party, Dutch Freedom Party and the Swiss
People’s Party. Furthermore, many of these countries and parties also have anti-immigrant
policies in place. Brzozowski (2020) writes that on the 23rd of September 2020, the
European Commission strongly suggested that all European Union nations needed to share
the responsibility for refugees and migrants through a mandatory solidarity system. A new
proposal needed to be made in order to balance the positions of the Eastern and Southern
member states. Member states would be required to welcome asylum seekers, return those
who do not get asylum and provide financial aid (paras. 2-3). However, some eastern
European Countries, also known as the Visegrad Four, and of which most follow ideals of
nationalism, rejected this new proposal for dealing with migrants, as the measures were not
severe enough (Brzozowski, 2020, para. 1). This essay will investigate the following question:
How does nationalism affect migration?
In her article, Greenfeld (2011) writes that nationalism arose in Western European England
in the sixteenth century (p. 5). According to author Leah Greenfeld, “its emergence coincided
with the dawning of the European Age in History” (Greenfeld, 2011, p .5). This means that,
during the ascent of Western Europe and societies of those western European countries, the
1
