“The lack of constitutional culture contributes to the development and aggravation of the crisis of democracy”

Psocial security financing bill; Paragraph 3 of Articles 40, 47.1 and 49 of the Constitution; budget riders; filibuster; Request for knowledge; break up Constitutional Council; Shared Initiative Referendum; Adoption of the law, etc. In the wake of the pension policy, legal and constitutional vocabulary suddenly spread; In this case, citizens and journalists showed a rare interest in our constitutional text.

It is true that the adoption of a law rarely leads to such a chain of procedures. For several months, the French constitution left a small circle of specialists. It is present on televisions, on the counters of cafes and even in the homes of the French. This phenomenon prompts us to bond with it, especially when compared to our neighbors across the Atlantic who glorify their founding text.

Is the usual lack of interest in the Constitution a vestige of revolutionary worship of the law? “Expression of General Will” ? Undoubtedly, but unfortunately, parliamentary life is not a subject of great enthusiasm either, which, among other things, is evidenced by the record restraint of recent years.

Whatever the cause, the result is indisputable: France lacks both an emotional attachment to and knowledge of the constitutional text. We collectively suffer from a lack of constitutional culture, which is not satisfactory in a democracy worthy of the name..

Civic education was taken seriously

It is essential that everyone be able to understand as soon as possible the questions which, although technical in appearance, have a great influence on the political life and daily life of the French people. The consequences are not insignificant: in addition to the development of a culture of opinion (and sometimes conspiracy), decision-making is increasingly perceived as a task for experts, which contributes to the reinforcement of democratic inertia.

Thus, the absence of a common constitutional culture contributes to the development and aggravation of the crisis of democracy, hindering especially the expression of citizenship. As a remedy for this crisis, most informed observers (citizens, public authorities, and academics) suggest reforming institutions and strengthening citizen participation, perhaps rightly so. It is equally important for us to pay attention to an element that is too often absent from the democratic debate: the constitutional education of citizens in school, and that from an early age.