The Importance of Festivals as Social Phenomenon in Romania

Gabriela Elena CSOKA

In this society increasingly globalized and multicultural, to cope with cultural diversity has become a major challenge. The migratory waves and the successive enlargement of the European Union have put European peoples and cultures in continuous contact and in the position of exchanging each other so that living in a multicultural community has become something normal for millions of people. Festivals have played a fundamental role in this process since the different cultural trends and phenomena closely related to the issue of immigration and intercultural communities can find in this festive atmosphere an ideal setting to express themselves freely and pacifistically. Festivals have always promoted the protection of the fundamental right to freedom of expression and their programs have catalyzed the circulation of ideas and people, the creation of peaceful coexistence and the promotion of an active European citizenship. Cultural diversity, intercultural dialogue and the economic impact of culture now occupy a leading role in the European Union agenda, the aim of which is to create an even closer link between the European peoples and to give all citizens the opportunity to participate actively in intercultural dialogue so as to strengthen the coexistence of different cultural beliefs and identities, while at the same time highlighting their common heritage and recognizing and respecting the differences between individual and local experiences.