MichaelK, yes it does, and if you ask a person of Cuban heritage or other Hispanic or Vietnamese or Chinese, or British or German, or whatever their heritage may be, to identify themselves as I did. You get a look that suggest your stunned and told, "I'm a New Yorker. Whadaya think. I'm stand'n right here in front of ya ain't I. Sheesh"
A very different response than one would receive in Sydney or Melbourne.
In Australia if you ask that same question the person would likely hold you captive until they had explained their families migratory history in full. I've even heard people say such things as, "Well, my great-great grandfather came over from England and....

New York, (the city) has a multicultural curriculum in its public schools. The policies on MC in the US are decided on State by State, and even institution by institution. Depending on the mix of the population. Many areas in the US are very, very multicultural. New York is very proud of the fact. They actually bear out Jieh-Yung Lo’s premise that a policy per se is not needed, we’ll be a multicultural society anyway, simply because we come from all over the world.

In California for instance it is compulsory to learn Spanish at school. You are only exempt if you speak another language, other than English, at home. (California is effectively bilingual) This is the dilemma facing my Dutch/Italian cousin. She now regrets not teaching her children more formally in both languages. She still speaks these languages with her parents and extended family.

In the States there is also discussion about multiculturalism/ cultural democracy/ cultural pluralism. These also entails Afro-American culture, White mainstream culture, gay culture etc. The difference in the States to Australia is that it doesn't seem to be used to cast doubt on a person’s loyalty to the nation or the unity that American's feel. Wouldn't it be great if we could do the same

FrankGol says: "Oligarch, you accuse me of 'unfounded, dogmatic certitude'. And you do it with 'unfounded dogmatic certitude'. But I'm not your prime target. You call Jieh-Yung Lo a 'multicultural industry beneficiary' and berate him for having the 'audacity to lecture Australians'. Wouldn't you feel better if you dealt with his ideas rather than name-calling and mud-slinging?"

I'm might also accuse you of evasiveness.

Mr. Lo explicitly identifies himself as Chinese rather than Australian. Does this not directly contradict your denial that multiculturalism places allegiance to ethnicity and old culture over Australian nationality?

YVONNNNNE....

"Basically, do we want to be a crispy tossed salad or mashed potatoes? I like being a tomato, but appreciate the lettuce and onions too."

Yes dear.. but we don't single out each ingredient.. we glory in the SALAD.. and thats my point. And as each ingredient contributes, we say "Yep..that was a great SALAD" We don't say "Mmmmm the tomatoes in that salad were great" well, not usually I think.

So, its a thing of emphAAAAsis.. Lets focus on the goal "A great Salad". That way the tomato farmers are working in the interests of the Salad..NOT just the Tomatoes :) Sound ok ?

"Mashed Potato" sounds a bit like Pericles "Who will 'POLICE' these things".. like the only alternative to MC is tyranny and jackboots slamming everyone into a cultural mould. No no no....the alternative is:

Assisting migrants of different cultural background to embrace Australian culture BUT at the same time, being completely OPEN to beneficial aspects of those cultures which we can incorporate into the emergin Australian identity. One Body, many parts, all function for the benefit of the whole. One Salad, many ingredients.(PLEASE don't miss this point)

Cheers.

PERICLES. I'm noticing a 'pattern' .. you seem to have a 'thing' about seeing huge evil conspiracies and dark forces at work when people disagree with you or speak about things which unsettle you.
People speak about encouraging a healthy Australian nationalism' and you only see a Mosely, a MonoCulture and Tyrants from whom you must fleeeeee.
Your repeated points about who will 'police' things.. tells a lot about your inner fears I think, and your projecting of this as an overlay on other peoples views. I can't help but think of the 'domestic pets is slavery' in all this

In fact..its as simple as this.

At a gym I attend, there are Lao, Cambodian, Iranian,Greek,Anglo,Indonesian,Philipino, Samoan people oops..wait..

no thats not right..

because when we are all interacting and getting along fine we are AUSTRALIANS. (and heaven forbid, if our kids get along well also, and shock horror are attracted to each other.. gee..their children might no longer be 'pure' any of those races, but they will sure be pure "Australians" no matter what their racial mix.

*smile*

http://theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21431285-2702,00.html?from=public_rss

English not best test of a doctor
Clara Pirani, Medical reporter
March 23, 2007

DOCTORS from Iraq, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh - who struggle to have their medical qualifications recognised in Australia - score higher marks in Australian medical exams than doctors from Britain who are courted by the federal and state governments.
A report commissioned by the Howard Government, but never released, found Australia's health system was overly reliant on young doctors from English-speaking backgrounds who were not adequately supervised.
The report - the most comprehensive undertaken into the use of overseas-trained doctors (OTDs) - recommends the Government increase funding to upgrade the skills of doctors who want to become permanent residents, to reduce the reliance on "backpacker" doctors.
Doctors who come from countries with similar medical systems to Australia - mostly English-speaking - can enter the country on temporary visas and are not required to take the examinations of the Australian Medical Council.
However, many of the doctors are recent graduates who are appointed to senior positions, according to the report's author, Lesleyanne Hawthorne, associate dean international of the University of Melbourne's faculty of medicine.
...
"We found doctors from the Middle East and north Africa were treated with a lot more wariness by employers, even though they were less likely to fail the AMC exam than English-speaking doctors."
Andrew Schwartz, president of the Australian Doctors Trained Overseas Association, said state governments were reluctant to employ experienced doctors from non-English-speaking backgrounds, and that too few positions were filled by permanent residents.
"Governments are wasting money bringing in these temporary residents who leave, when we really need bridging courses to get permanent residents into the workforce," he said.