Money, citizenship, territoriality and the proposals for North American Monetary Union

Abstract

Discussions regarding a possible North American Monetary Union (NAMU) between Canada and the United States exploded in 1999. Advocates of a NAMU emphasized the economic benefits to be had by creating a supra-national currency across the world's largest trading partners, including the elimination of transaction and hedging costs; the creation of a less volatile trading area; and an anticipated increase in the intensity of continental trade. But what impact would a NAMU have on the relationship between the state and civil society, particularly vis-à-vis social citizenship? This paper examines the potential impact of the proposed NAMU with respect to three aspects of state–society relationships: (1) national community and belonging; (2) political sovereignty and accountability; and (3) social rights and the welfare state. In so doing, I set out a framework for thinking about how the national organization of money in Western nation-states, a territorialization that was coterminous with the formation of a national economy, is interconnected with the rise of social citizenship in the early 20th century. Understanding the constitutive relationship between currencies and citizenship suggests ways that social, cultural and political concerns need to be taken into consideration in the restructuring of monetary organization.