CSE Lecture Explores How Britain Got to Brexit
On October 29, 2021, the Center for the Study of Europe (CSE), an affiliated center of the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, concluded its month-long exploration of Brexit with a lecture by James Cronin, a Research Professor in the Department of History at Boston College, titled, “How Britain Got to Brexit? 1985-2016.”
In his remarks, Cronin outlined changes in the nature of politics and political parties since the 1970s leading to Brexit, notably changes in the perception of Europe signaled by Margaret Thatcher’s infamous Bruges speech in 1988, the weakening of support for the center-right, and the regrouping of the political left in the 1990s, and the rise of populism, among others.
A recording of the event can be viewed below.
The mission of the Center for the Study of Europe is to promote understanding of Europe through its cultural heritage; its political, economic, and religious histories; its art, literature, music, and philosophy; as well as through its recent emergence as a new kind of international form through the European Union (EU). Operationally, the center provides a focal point and institutional support for the study of Europe across Boston University through coordination of teaching missions, support of research, community-building among faculty and students, and outreach beyond the University. Visit the center’s website for more.