[Nov 11] The Philosophical Foundations of the European Culture War

Date:  November 11, 2024 (Monday)

Time: 5:30 PM

Venue: CRT-5.41, 5/F, Run Run Shaw Tower, Centennial Campus, HKU

Speaker: Dr Eric Hendriks | Fellow at the Danube Institute (Budapest) and Director of the China Initiative of the Telos-Paul Piccone Institute (New York)

Discussant:  Prof Stefan Auer | Professor of European Studies, SMLC, HKU

Abstract:

There is not just an American culture war but also a European one. However, the European culture war is hard to understand because it touches upon complex philosophical matters. It involves competing understandings of democracy and the rule of law. Dr. Eric Hendriks, a Dutch, Budapest-based sociologist, will disentangle the division lines. He will argue that the European culture war is a conflict between technocratic liberalism, which is strongest in Western Europe and championed by the European Commission, and sovereigntist national conservatism, represented most prominently by Orbán’s Hungary. Both sides accuse the other of being undemocratic.

All are welcome. No registration is required.

For enquiries, please contact smlc@hku.hk