Promoting Multiculturalism over the World - Essay Example

Multiculturalism Introduction Multiculturalism is defined by the Wordnet (Princeton as "the doctrine that several different cultures (rather than one national culture) can coexist peacefully and equitably in a single country". Many nations in the world promote multiculturalism and have continued to do so for a long time reaping enormous benefits. Yet some nations are completely against the idea and are ethnocentric in every sense. The chairman of the Commission for Racial Equality, Trevor Phillips, is one of those critics who is against this idea. Certain key members of the British nation have continued to promote multiculturalism and say that it is a concept that has been there even before large scale immigrations began. To have a multicultural state, the nation must be a multi-ethnic; the cultures should be open, self-critical, and interactive in their relations with other each other (Interviews by Cindi John, 2004). It means welcomming, living, sharing and caring for and with culturally diverse people. This diversity comes from people who migrate from their respective nations in search for better conditions than those available back home. Most often the reason cited for this immigration is for a look out of a prospective job, however reasons such as looking for a safe and secure environment can also be seen. The immigration of muslim communities to muslim nations is one such example. The roots of Multiculturalism in the US can be found in the Civil Rights Movement of 1960s when the minorites (Blacks) fought for their rights (UWM, 2002). Thus it can be said that even though the immigrants do not hold citizenship of the country they live in, yet they have their rights which the a multiculturistic country must give in order to prevent discord and conflicts. Pros of Multiculturalism Now the all important question comes of why some countries like US and Canada promote multiculturalism. 1. Extinguish Racism Multiculturalism is thought to be connected to a solution in solving the problem of racism and discrimination in the society. According to the literature, when culturally diverse people live together, they form a bond; a sort of a relationship between themselves. After the initial conflicts and misunderstandings are over, they start to learn from each other and appreciate each other's diversity. Different cultures are understood, language is simplified, feeling of humanity is restored and as a result diversity is accepted and racism extinguished. 2. Diversity Breeds Creativity, Skills & Knowledge People from different backgrounds and cultures have different skills, talents and knowledge. This is what makes them so different. This diversity is good for any organization which employes culturally diverse people. People bring in different knowledge and skills which is essential for any growing organization. New ideas are bred, skills are exchnaged and learnt, and as a result creativity is enhanced. A study done by Sweeney, Weaven, & Herington (2008), showed the positive effect on quality of work done by diverse people working in groups. This goes on to show that countries promote multiculuralism since it is good for their country and its people. A third world nations, like Pakistan or India, can find it increasingly beneficial when foreigneres bring foreign direct investment, new technoloy and know-how, as well as any information or skills previouly not available in the country. 3. Exposure For any country, the exposure of its resources is beneficial for the economic situation. Through multiculturalism, people belonging to other countries can come and help enhance, grow and improve the existing industry. Once a country gets known for its industry, talent, skills or resources, it creates demand for more and hence get the wheel of the country moving. This is the case with Dubai, where many different cultures live and continue to come in because of the attractiveness of the Emirate. Cons of Multiculturalism Where there are countries that promote multiculturalism due to its advantages, there are others who criticize it due to the many perceived disadvantages and problems it creates. 1. Melting Pot The advantage given in the last section about multiculturalism, creating exposure of the local resources thus churning the local industries, also creates a problem. With the many diverse populations living in the US, it now finds itself trapped into these many diversities created by its non-intervention immigration policies. Ronald Takaki, a professor at University of California, Berkeley said that "Multiculturalism and immigration are not only a large part of America's past, they are an inescapable part of our future" (Durkin, 2008). According to his estimate, the current minorities in US would become the majorities by the year 2060 pushing out the Americans of European decent into the minority group. This would potentially cause a shift in the political system, democracy, economics and all decision making amongst other problems. 2. Discrimination Another criticism of multiculturalism is that it does exactly the opposite of what its intended meaning is. According to the Ayn Rand Institute Newsletter (ARI, 2002), "Far from being a cure for racism, multiculturalism is racism in a new, self-righteous guise". When people are made aware of the differences that are amongst them and when these different people come and live amongst the locals, a complete negative reaction comes out. Teaching ethnic diversity courses in colleges and universities due to multiculturalism does exactly this and promotes the differences in the mind of the young scholars. Multiculturalism teaches that people's identity is molded and ones worth is determined by ethnic racial membership and is inherited. This means that ones decisions, actions and choices have no hand in making one's personality. Teaching this to create awareness of diversity in people affects nation into thinking that they are what they are and they cannot change and be a part of the new system. 3. Identity Politics 'Identity politics' means the inclination to label a person's political and social identity and interests purely in terms of some group category like in terms of their race, ethnicity, class, gender, nationality, religion. As mentioned above, after the 1960s multiculturalism became popular, and as a byproduct, so did the identity politics. US is criticized because people there are recognized with a particular group, rather than with their own nation. Because of this, people are increasingly being known as Native-Americans, African-Americans, Latino-Americans, Asian-Americans, etc., in an outburst of segregation and discrimination. (UWM, 2002) Countries that do not Promote Multiculturalism Countries in the world still continue trying to protect their existing culture by attacking the cultures of others. Ethnocentrism runs strong in these nations who try their best to not to allow foreigners to come to their country. Australia follows a mono-cultural approach with its city, Sydney, as the only multicultural city. John Howard is against multiculturalism and continues to pass mono-cultural sentiments and even policies to protect the country from the outside world. History has explained that being mono-cultural almost always results in the implosion of such ideas. The China's Cultural Revolution and the Nazi Germany are two such examples (Damo, 2007). When there is no diversity in a homogenous culture, like in European Countries, there is little recognition abroad. In Europe so many different countries were separated and formed into individual countries just because of this preceding ethnocentricity. After many years, the European Bloc decided to reunite under the title of European Union and show some solidarity for change. However due to the underlying values their individual cultures have taught them, EU still faces many problems in integration for decision making. Conclusion There is a widespread debate of whether multiculturalism is the ideal change or maybe the contemporary ideology of mono-cultural environment will be conducive for all in times to come. This debate has no end. It's just the individual views that matter for everybody. Works Cited 1. ARI. (2002). Multiculturalism: An Assault on the Individual. Retrieved April 14, 2008, from Ayn Rand Institute: http://www.aynrand.org/site/DocServer/newsletter_multiculturalism.pdfdocID=162 2. CRICK, S. B., PAREKH, L., & CHOUHAN, K. (2004, April 4). So what exactly is multiculturalism (C. John, Interviewer) 3. Damo. (2007). Multiculturalism verses Monoculturalism. Retrieved April 14, 2008, from My Apologetics: http://www.myapologetics.com/multiculturalism-vs-monoculturalism/ 4. Durkin, J. (2008). America can't escape a future of multiculturalism, speaker says. Scranton, PA: Times-Tribune. 5. Sweeney, A., Weaven, S., & Herington, C. (Apr2008). Multicultural influences on group learning: a qualitative higher education study. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education , Vol. 33 Issue 2, p119-132. 6. University, P. (n.d.). Multiculturalism . Retrieved April 14, 2008, from Princeton University: http://wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwns=multiculturalism 7. UWM. (2002). What is Multiculturalism Retrieved April 14, 2008, from University of Wisconsin--Milwaukee: http://www.uwm.edu/gjay/Multicult/Multiculturalism.html Read More