Constitutional patriotism is especially applicable in the European Union because there is no single shared history or culture. It is not rooted in pride in a culture, race or ethnicity, but rather, in a political order. The European Union makes multinational claims in its constitution, and this makes political allegiance a complicated question to address. Creating a unified European identity is a difficult task, but constitutional patriotism has offered a liberal alternative to other forms of nationalism. It allows people to remain attached to a unique culture, potentially to their individual countries, but still share a common patriotic identity with other Europeans. It also encourages Europeans to distance themselves from "ethnic public self-definitions, ethnic definitions of citizenship and ethnic-priority immigration."