Einstein::A World Citizen

Einstein's passionate commitment to the cause of global peace led him to support the creation of a single, unified world government.

Einstein thought that patriotic zeal often became an excuse for violence: "As a citizen of Germany," he wrote in 1947, "I saw how excessive nationalism can spread like a disease, bringing tragedy to millions." To combat this "disease," Einstein wanted to eliminate nationalistic sentiments—first by erasing the political borders between countries and then by instituting an international government with sovereignty over individual states.

During World War I, Einstein supported the formation of the "United States of Europe."

He later endorsed the League of Nations and its successor, the United Nations. But Einstein worried that the United Nations did not have enough authority to ensure world peace.

Einstein himself seemed to have little regard for national boundaries.

His true allegiance was simply to the human race: "I am by heritage a Jew, by citizenship a Swiss , and by makeup a human being, and only a human being, without any special attachment to any state or national entity whatsoever."