Constitutional patriotism: Canada and the European Union

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the question of allegiance in complex multinational and poly-ethnic entities, with specific focus on the EU and Canada. Constitutional patriotism is a mode of attachment that is conducive to respect for and accommodation of difference and plurality. How thick does this form of allegiance need to be to work in highly diverse societies? I consider what might be understood as the minimum requirements for this form of allegiance to serve the necessary integrative needs for a community, and how accommodating of difference and diversity that constitutional patriotism may be understood to be. Note that this latter point is not only about the scope for voicing dissent; it is also about the prospects for exit (understood in a communal and/or territorial sense). Some claims for difference are simply very difficult to accommodate within a common framework. With exit being an available option, the conditions for fostering loyalty and effecting voice change. Constitutional patriotism, as nationalism, is a mode of attachment that is based on a particular constellation of exit, voice, and loyalty. I try to discern what kind of constellation(s) of exit, voice, and loyalty that sits best with constitutional patriotism, including how different/similar to nationalism this is. After that I try this out on the EU and Canada. The focus is on three sets of dimensions which help shed light on each entity’s particular understanding of constitutional patriotism and the underlying constellation of exit, voice and loyalty. I examine what these cases tell us about the role of rights in promoting/fostering constitutional patriotism, through focus on each entity’s Charter. Further, I look at each entity’s commitment to difference/diversity through examining their respective multiculturalism policies. I seek to identify the philosophy of allegiance underpinning each entity’s policy framework so as to establish whether these are informed by the spirit of constitutional patriotism. An important concern is to establish whether the policies are essentially reflective of respect for difference/diversity or are simply a more subtle form of integration. This should be considered together with the final point, that of exit options. The focus is on democratic provisions for territorial exit. Is constitutional patriotism based on an approach to territorial exit that is different from or similar to that of nationalism?