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Transnational LGBTI Activism and the European Courts: Constructing the Idea of Europe

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LGBT Activism and the Making of Europe

Part of the book series: Gender and Politics series ((GAP))

Abstract

In the famous words of former judge Pierre Pescatore, the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) has always been inspired by “une certaine idée de l’Europe,” meaning that the judges defined their mission as contributing to an ever-closer union between the peoples of Europe (Pescatore 1983: 157). This and similar statements have led to criticism among legal scholars, constitutional courts, and governments. They have questioned the activism of the judges, which, it is argued, could turn the ECJ into another European human rights court whereas its mandate was to contribute to market integration by enforcing intergovernmental bargains and resolving trade-related disputes (Garrett 1995).

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Authors
  1. Anna van der Vleuten
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Political Science, Drexel University, USA

    Phillip M. Ayoub (Assistant Professor of Political Science) (Assistant Professor of Political Science)

  2. Department of Sociology, Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium

    David Paternotte (Assistant Professor of Sociology) (Assistant Professor of Sociology)

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© 2014 Anna van der Vleuten

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van der Vleuten, A. (2014). Transnational LGBTI Activism and the European Courts: Constructing the Idea of Europe. In: Ayoub, P.M., Paternotte, D. (eds) LGBT Activism and the Making of Europe. Gender and Politics series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137391766_6

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