26th of October 2017

Industrial capitalism structurally changed after WWII, with repercussions on working conditions and on the quality of workers’ and their families’ life. On the political field, Christian values and the traditional Christian Democratic model were put to the test by new Labour issues. In the Fifties and Sixties, the increase in wealth and the broader demand for individual and common welfare reshaped the concepts of political and social citizenship. The turbulent Seventies challenged the selfhealing qualities of an increasingly globaloriented capitalism, while Communist regimes were on the decline. Finally, the last decades of the XXth century saw a crisis of the representative role of political parties, opening the way to new developments of the democratic system. The symposium is going to discuss how Christian-inspired associations (political parties, movements, trade unions and co operatives) tried to promote over time new political and social projects combining capitalist economy with democratic participation of citizens and workers.