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The Forum > Article Comments > Defending multiculturalism > Comments

Defending multiculturalism : Comments

By Alice Aslan, published 10/11/2011

It has become very trendy to denounce multiculturalism in Europe. The political leaders of three major European countries have one by one denounced multiculturalism as a failure.

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I agree Alice, apart from the terrorism,riots, murders, honour illings and general inability to get past the eleventh century, multiculturalism has been a raging success.

Objections to the phenomena above are nothing more than trendiness. Merkel and Sarkozy know nothing and you're right.
Posted by KenH, Thursday, 10 November 2011 6:01:58 AM
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"The secretary acknowledges that Islam has been linked to terrorism and the oppression of women globally". Why?

Why,oh why, do we need 'multicultural policies', liberal democratic states are intrinsically multicultural? There's no need for social engineering.
The article attempts to conflate racism, scepticism in regard to multiculturalism and "Islamophobia" (whatever that is) in an attempt to occupy the moral high ground.

We could, of course, adopt the Islamic version of 'multiculturalism'.
Posted by mac, Thursday, 10 November 2011 7:55:09 AM
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If multiculturalism is not propped up by regulations, subsidies and positive discrimination "assistance", then we might see people doing a little more to adapt to their surroundings .. and develop into citizens who recognize their adopted countries social and cultural benefits.

At the moment, it appears, and only in wealthy countries, that the opposite is encouraged and then an "us and them" attitude develops.

Look at countries with zero assistance to differing cultural groups, and they seem to mostly do OK, there is tolerance, but when you get one group demanding to remain different but insisting the other group change to accommodate them, you get resentment.

It's all very nice saying we should all get along, but there are losers here and they resent it, they tend to be the ones who were of the original culture.

So it is with new arrivals to countries, with very different cultural needs, who then demand laws and practices be changed to their requirements.

They appear to have zero tolerance to the existing laws of a new country, yet moved there regardless and that is an indication that they never intended to fit in and always intended to remain separate and intolerant to their adopted countries culture.

So we are expected to be tolerant to the intolerant?

There's your problem, you have two cultures intolerant to each other. We started out being tolerant to different cultures in the name of multiculturalism, we were ready to give it a go and did.

What we got is not what we expected, whole cultures moving in who quite plainly dislike us, our culture, our world and want nothing to do with us or our laws, but are happy to demand special schools laws and are happy to indulge in our welfare.

To us, the old days of migrants coming here, like my family, and putting in effort to join the culture is way more successful.

Multiculturalism exists only where the state does not interfere or demand tolerance, then people find their own balance.
Posted by Amicus, Thursday, 10 November 2011 8:07:45 AM
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One point that keeps popping up is the equation of objections to multi-culturalism (or aspects of a small number of cultures) with racism. The author speaks of anti-racists defending multi-culturalism.

It's my impression that most (not all) opponents of multi-culturalism object to cultural practices from other cultures growing in prominance within our society not to the race of those involved. The objections are to real or perceived intrusions on our own way of life much more than the rights of others to go about their own lives as they choose.

Sometimes there is a strong correlation between race and the cultural practices, at other times not so much.

Dismissing the concerns of those objecting to aspects of multiculturalism as racism does not help in any way. There are some real problems being experienced in a lot of places resulting from a number of factors.
- the distain or contempt help by some from other cultures for western cultures and values
- the isolation faced by some migrants as a result of their own cultural values or from the actions of those within our own culture who try to maximise conflict.
- a lack of understanding by many on both sides of the fence of just what multi-culturalism should mean and how it should play out in reality.

R0bert
Posted by R0bert, Thursday, 10 November 2011 10:02:50 AM
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...One must keep firmly in mind, the repealing of the white Australia policy in 1973 was in response to inability to source sufficient immigrants from traditional countries of Europe to satisfy the need for population increases needed to maintain economic growth.

...Australians dwelt comfortable inside the confines of cultural norms of the white Australia policy. Australians have an historic repulsion to Asians, and scratch the skin of an Australian at a relaxed moment, and you will soon discover the rejection of Asians is alive and well!

...Official banning of Australian racism through multicultural policies will only serve to deepen the pain to the loss of the unique Australian culture, forced onto Australian society, since the act was repealed with great fanfare in the 1970’s. This is a backflip in Australian cultural development deeply resented
Posted by diver dan, Thursday, 10 November 2011 10:48:56 AM
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KenH,

Couldn't agree more. The multicultural lobby (i.e. the every culture is valid and worth preserving except those derived from Europe mob) conveniently ingore some very inconvenient truths.

I suggest Alice go to Saudi Arabia and preach multiculturalism to them. I hear they love pro gay atheists over there.
Posted by dane, Thursday, 10 November 2011 10:52:34 AM
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