Luigi Ferrajoli

A few weeks ago, we went climbing in Italy. We stayed at a lovely B&B and had some nice conversations with our host about travel, life and so forth. He’d been to Vietnam, Cuba….and a few other places which made me ask him the question, “Are you interested in communism?” to which he replied, “Yes, I identified myself as an anarcho-communist when I was younger.” I laughed and we had a great conversation. He is someone who believes in a different future, a better one. It was great to meet him.

Today he’s interested in a legal expert in Italy named Luigi Ferrajoli. Ferrajoli has written a book (only in Italian, unfortunately for me) about creating a world constitution. Ferrajoli also has a YouTube presentation of his ideas. I asked an Italian speaking colleague to give me a summary (and gratefully, she did! Thank you Sabrina!).

Here is what Mr Ferrajoli has to say:

• the project for a world constitution was born in response to the various crises currently afflicting our planet (climate change, the threat of nuclear war, water shortages, constant human rights violations, etc.).
• the project was also born of the realization that law cannot be separated from the economy; we are governed by local laws, while the economy works on a global scale.
• economic disparities are insane (the 8 richest people on Earth have the same wealth as half the world’s poorest population, i.e. 4 billion people!)
• to those who say that this project is utopian, he replies that the real utopia is to think that we can continue to live in these conditions.
• this project would also be in the interest of the richest, because we only have one planet, and for the first time in human history, we’re facing the real risk of its disappearance.
• We need an awakening of consciousness: Ferrajoli has already drawn up a draft (of 100 articles) of this constitution, which is being presented/worked on at academic level and also taught in secondary schools (in Italy). In Europe, then, it’s still at the theoretical stage, but in some Latin American countries it’s already beginning to be integrated at the political level.

Here’s the source: https://youtu.be/5LXG1cOgmBQ?feature=shared

Ferrajoli has also written a book, also only in Italian, which I find very frustrating! How do we ask an editor to do a translation of a book? I’d like to know more about the ideas of someone who, in spite of all the awful things going on in the world, has found a space to be positive about the future with concrete ideas of how to make that happen.

Why not dream? Dreams are free!