The EU Referendum: Brexit's Imperial Delusions

Citation

Haastrup T (2016) The EU Referendum: Brexit's Imperial Delusions. The Disorder of Things: For the Relentless Criticism of All Existing Conditions Since 2010 [Blog Post] 25.05.2016. https://thedisorderofthings.com/2016/05/25/eu-referendum-brexits-imperial-delusions/

Abstract
First paragraph: One key aspect of the EU referendum debate has been the rise of competing narratives about Britain’s role in the world inside and outside of the EU. On the Brexit side, campaigners argue that escaping the EU would revive Britain’s standing, allowing it to reconfigure relations with Europe, strengthen existing non-European partnerships, and forge new ones. These claims rest on a series of self-delusions about Britain’s capacity to unilaterally set the terms of its international partnerships. Brexiteers willfully ignore those prospective partners who say that a post-Brexit UK would be a less attractive partner. Their narrative seems to rest more on imperial delusions than solid ground – and it is hardly a narrative appropriate for a truly democratic, internationalist country.