Brussels is increasingly expected to serve as the European Union's sheriff on rule of law. But its ability to enforce adherence to democratic norms and values remains weak. Mehreen Khan of the Financial Times talks about the EU's latest showdown with Poland and Hungary. She also discusses illiberal trends in France and her own brush with the country's newly restrictive climate for free expression. Politics expert Garvan Walshe talks about his latest pro-democracy project, a news site called article7.eu that's dedicated to tracking rule of law issues in Europe.This episode of EU Scream is sponsored by Google. The pandemic has hit European small and medium sized businesses hard. That's why Google is offering free tools and training to help businesses in Europe grow. For more information go to g.co/growwithgoogleBeethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and more EU Scream.Support the show

Strategic autonomy has become the mantra for European Union officials. It started as a broadly French idea: that Europe needs sufficient military power to promote peace and security independent of the US. The idea has evolved to include power in trade and technology to enable Europe to avoid getting squeezed by China and America. Now with Joe Biden as US president-elect, the concept is again up for debate.Nathalie Tocci wrote the European Global Strategy that gave the concept of strategic autonomy its prominence. She says strategic autonomy should remain a guiding principle for Europe, even after Donald Trump leaves the White House. Another challenge for strategic autonomy comes from EU member states with liberal economic and internationalist outlooks. Financial Times Brussels reporter Mehreen Khan talks about the implications of strategic autonomy for Europe's free traders, the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines, and the durability of Europe's soft power credentials. This episode of EU Scream is sponsored by Google. The pandemic has hit European small and medium sized businesses hard. That's why Google is offering free tools and training to help businesses in Europe grow. For more information go to g.co/growwithgoogleBeethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show

Intersectionality is the concept that overlapping identities — disability, gender, race and sexual orientation for example — create forms of discrimination that can go unaddressed. But many European Union leaders are wary of the kind of identity politics that intersectionality implies. That resistance may be stiffening now that France is promoting traditional republican identities for its citizens so zealously. Emilia Roig is the founder and executive director of the Berlin-based Center for Intersectional Justice. Emilia discusses the transatlantic dimensions of intersectionality and outlines ways how Europe can apply the concept to enhance racial justice and equality. Katrin Langensiepen is a Green member of the European Parliament from Germany and the first female member to have a visible disability. Katrin sees intersectionality and inclusion as the latest stages in advances for civil rights made since the 1960s. Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.This episode of EU Scream is sponsored by Google. The pandemic has hit European small and medium sized businesses hard. That's why Google is offering free tools and training to help businesses in Europe grow. For more information go to g.co/growwithgoogleSupport the show

Bigots and far-right extremists are using online violence to try to silence feminists and LGBT people. It's a cowardly tactic since perpetrators don’t have to meet their targets. We hear stories from two Europeans on the receiving end: Irantzu Varela, a prominent feminist in Spain and host of the popular YouTube show El Tornillo; and Simeon Vasilev, the co-founder and chief executive of the GLAS Foundation, an organization promoting the acceptance of Gays and Lesbians in Bulgarian society. The scale of the problem is putting pressure on the EU to force platforms like Facebook and Twitter to do more to protect users. We get analysis from Asha Allen, a policy & campaigns officer at the European Women’s Lobby, and from Guillermo Beltrà, EU Digital Policy Lead at the Open Society European Policy Institute, which partnered with EU Scream in making this episode. Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show

Ylva Johansson is done with drama queen discussions that portray migrants and refugees as an existential threat to Europe. Johansson is the European Commissioner for home affairs and she’d like to make migration a more normal issue. She’d also like to win the approval of all EU member states for a new proposal for a common asylum and migration policy — something her predecessors failed to do. But the real test for Johansson may be a personal one: how to hold fast to her deeply felt commitment to multiculturalism amid intense pressure to do even more to seal Europe’s external borders from newcomers. Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show

The European Union has embarked on a push against racism amid protests following the killing of George Floyd. But important questions remain about whether some EU leaders and policies, and the bloc’s broadly federalist priorities, are the best choices for achieving that goal. Mehreen Khan, EU correspondent for the Financial Times, assesses the anti-racism credentials of the European Commission under the leadership of President Ursula von der Leyen. “Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125” by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show

Computing known as artificial intelligence sorts vast amounts of data — faces, our web browsing habits, even our gestures — into automated predictions used by companies and governments. The technology holds great promise for applications like diagnosing disease and preventing catastrophes. Yet it can exacerbate discrimination and inequality, and be used to erode democracy. Despite concerns about human rights and civil liberties, and about the activities of companies like Clearview AI and Palantir Technologies, European Union authorities are shaping a 21st-century industrial policy around artificial intelligence. That includes opening access to vast amounts of data — data from both the private and the public sectors — in the name of innovation and entrepreneurship. Critics warn that Europe could find itself in an untenable position, caught between upholding privacy ethics that have helped burnish its global reputation, and seeking to boost its competitiveness and security by promoting intrusive industries. We speak with four experts and legislators about how to keep A.I. safe for citizens: Samira Rafaela, a Dutch member of the European Parliament; Joanna Bryson, professor of Ethics and Technology at the Hertie School in Berlin; Sarah Chander, senior policy adviser for the European Digital Rights Association, EDRi; and Patrick Breyer, a member of the European Parliament who represents the German Pirates in alliance with the Greens. “Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125” by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show

Standing up to bullies was ingrained in Frans Timmermans from his schooldays. The Dutchman came to prominence six years ago as his country's foreign minister with an emotional speech at the United Nations. Russian-backed separatists had shot down Flight MH17 packed with Dutch nationals, and Timmermans channelled the sentiments of a shocked nation to the world. In his next job as first vice president of the European Commission, he squared off with right-wing populists like the U.K.’s Nigel Farage and with autocratically minded leaders in Hungary and Poland. Last year Timmermans, a member of the Dutch Labour Party, led a passionate and energetic campaign to become the president of the Commission. And for a week it seemed he would be appointed. But his tenaciousness had stirred too much bad blood with Budapest and Warsaw, and that opened the way for conservatives to coalesce around a Christian Democrat alternative, Ursula von der Leyen. Timmermans took a role overseeing the European Green Deal as one of the Commission’s three Executive Vice Presidents. To succeed he needs to stand up to governments and vested interests rushing to reboot economies crashed by the coronavirus. That means ensuring the trillions of euros that the EU and its member states spend transform rather than entrench polluting industries and infrastructure. Timmermans starts off his first podcast interview with how songwriters from Jacques Brel to Bruce Springsteen have been a source of solace and inspiration for him. “Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125” by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show

Lockdowns in response to the coronavirus mean cities are quieter, skies clearer, and breathing is easier. For many city dwellers the lack of cars tearing through their streets has been a revelation amid the suffering and loss inflicted by Covid-19. Now, as lockdowns ease, some cities are putting plans to keep cars out into hyperdrive. Those moves foretell the kind of Europe where living together more sustainably becomes the norm. But such an outcome is not inevitable. Pollution lobbies and the challenges facing mass transit systems are among factors that could hold back a green recovery in some cities, says Mark Watts who heads the influential C40 network of global megacities. Pascal Smet is the popular secretary of state for urban development in Brussels who has fought for car-free urban space for years. In car-addicted Belgium, that goal once seemed like a galaxy far far away. Now it seems tantalisingly within reach. We’re grateful to the European Cultural Foundation for supporting this episode as a contribution to its Europe Day celebration. Visit the foundation's Europe Day website for more to see, read and experience. “Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125” by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show

Italians were hit hardest when the coronavirus landed in Europe but the European Union was slow to help the country. The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has apologised — twice. The contrition is better late than never, says Marco Zatterin, deputy editor of La Stampa newspaper in Turin. Even so, far-right anti-European forces have been able to exploit the procrastination to regain traction. That has renewed anxiety about an Italexit — a scenario where Italy falls out of the Eurozone and even the EU. Throughout the crisis, Zatterin, a former Brussels correspondent and an accomplished author, has led one of two teams at La Stampa that published the newspaper without interruption as the virus tore through Turin and the neighboring Lombardy region. The episode also features poems by Ben Ray whose volumes include What I heard on the Last Cassette Player in the World. “Beethoven Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125” by Papalin is licensed under CC by 3.0. "Magic Hour" by Three Chain Links is licensed under CC by 4.0. Wael Koudaih kindly contributed his track “Thawra” to this episode. You’ll find more of his music under the name Rayess Bek. Visit our website for episode art and for more EU Scream.Support the show