Common Economic Challenges, Similar Political Solutions, Different Social Reactions in Times of Crises. Barriers Against the Structured Social Movements in Romania

This article compares some social movements experienced in different European countries in a period characterised by significant political, economical and social challenges. Exploring the crisis from the social cohesion point of view, the paper intends to give an insight to the background which in times of crisis generated different reactions or even lack of reaction in Romania, compared to other countries in Europe. Comparing impressive social movements from England through France and Italy to Greece, on one hand, and the pale reactions in Romania on the other hand there is a need of to identify the causes of these striking differences as the inputs are quasi similar in all mentioned countries. This situation can be understood both in terms of politics, communitarian structure, and economic challenges. In Romania, the development cycles overlap the elective cycles undermining the sustainable development. Powerful social movements develop only in the presence of the preexistent condition of strong social cohesion. Moreover, the solidarity and the social cohesion depend on the sense of belonging to a community or on the sharing of a specific identity. Destroying the community spirit in Romania was a crucial political aim in the communist era, because it would have assured the stability of the system by destroying the very core of any possible collective reaction. The terrible consequences are obvious long after the fall of the totalitarian regime. Public policies do not yet have the power to sustain the ‘rebirth’ of the communities. In the years to come the political actions and the social reaction will develop a specific profile as 2011 or 2012 will be electoral years in England, France, and Romania. The result is a complex equation comprising political parties, trade unions, FMI, EMF and many other organizations. The literature considered is from national and international sources consisting of social studies, reports, and articles on the most recent events as well.