European political activism. In order to observe the phenomenon of political activism within the complex system of European integration, initiatives should be analyzed according to their "dominant" area of interest and observe political activism movements that emerged on European terrain. For example, some of them have emerged due to economic circumstances, others as a kind of demonstration against the environmental degradation of our planet, others again as a form of reaction by young citizens - especially students - within educational institutions and last but not least as cultural commentaries through artistic expressions and cultural projects. Some current examples from the 21st century representing the above areas could be as follows: "In 2002, the European Social Forum (ESF) in Xxxxxxxx opened with a march of one million people, and the subsequent ESFs in Paris (2003) and then London (2004) each gathered over 50,000 activists. The Greek demonstrations, the British Uncut campaigns, the French youth and student mobilizations, and the Spanish and Portuguese protests in the squares all denounced European policies with virtually the same arguments, but without significant coordination."59 Another notable example of political and civic activism and strong citizen collective initiative was that which emerged and hit Europe after the devastating economic crisis around 2008. The Indignados and Occupy movements spilled over into the wave of economic crisis that had a devastating impact on youth precarity and unemployment. However, the demands of this movement focused even more on a crisis of democracy, pointing to the real and structural limits of representative democracy. Activists denounce an "empty democracy", as policies that have a real impact on their lives are decided in circles over which citizens have no influence.60 A typical example of this was the "M15" movement in Spain after the crisis, a movement that denounced not only austerity measures but the concept of institutional democracy in general, lamenting its imposing nature. In any case, we must stress that this movement, originally activist, was partially transformed into a member of the coalition of the Spanish government from January 2020. 58 Xxxxxx Xxxxx: Going, Goin, … Reviving? Political Activism in Modern Europe. Abstract. Available under: xxxxx://xxxx.xx/Events/Event/PaperDetails/28682. Last accessed on 1st August 2021. 59 Available under: xxxxx://xxx.xxx.xxx/news/av/world-europe-54130150. Last accessed on 1st August ...
