Now that multiculturalism has become a popular concept, it is time for us to add more meat to the bone and expand on what it means to Canada to be a multicultural society. While most Canadians highlight our multicultural character as a virtue, it continues to mean different things to different people. Multiculturalism is the recognition that while Canadians share equal rights and responsibilities, they come with diverse cultural backgrounds where each is entitled to practice their faith freely and take pride in their heritage .
Multicultural critics think of multiculturalism as an enabler to ghettoize our communities where Canadians are discouraged from integrating with “mainstream” society. Other critics even see it as a threat to “Canadian Identity. “Such discussions are necessary within any confident society. The idea of building a harmonious nation with various cultures, faiths and races is tricky and requires a lot of delicate effort. Government multicultural policies should focus on building common spaces that promote cultural understanding and foster respect.
Policies that nurture interaction between the various communities will reduce suspicion and finger-pointing . 0ne of the other benefits of multiculturalism is that it acts as a filter. Practices that don’t afford respect to other Canadians including women, LGBTs, other faiths and cultures cannot be condoned by multiculturalism. In this article Has multiculturalism hit a bump in the road? The author focus on the point whether all citizens see themselves as multicultural, or is that Just a term we use to describe people who don’t fit into the old idea of Canada as the (mostly white)
English-French establishment or First Nations. The author ague that What we have is a multi-ethnic, multi-racial society living largely in segregation. What we have are people who immigrated to this country decades ago yet still can’t speak either English or French. Why? Because they dont have to. They live in their Little Italy, their Chinatown, their Little India or their Little Arabia you name an ethnic group and an ethnic enclave will exist and they don’t have to venture outside it because the screws have not been tightened on who we will accept as contributing immigrants.
And what ferments so often in many of these single-cultural, often state-dependent ghettos are the religious prejudices and ethnic hatreds of their homelands. It’s bad baggage. Why should anyone be allowed into Canada who has no facility in either of our official languages, or any commitment to learn and be tested, and who believes it the mindset of the countries they fled?
In this article the author first discuss the meaning of multiculturalism, the theory of radical perspectives to embrace the whole universe of our multicultural possibilities, nstead of merely human-centered perspectives, and examine what multiculturalism should not be, such as, including under the rubric “multiculturalism” certain extreme ethnocentric beliefs that have little or nothing in common with multiculturalism, It may be argued that knowledge of other cultures does not guarantee that one will end up appreciating, as opposed to hating them.
For example, where one before may know nothing about another culture, and therefore feel neither love nor hate for that culture, he may feel so frustrated, intimidated, or “challenged” by certain beliefs in hat culture when he does find out about it, that he develops an aversion toward it that even he himself may not be able to fully comprehend. This is why multicultural education alone may not suffice as a condition for the continued existence of a multicultural society but must be supplemented by a whole series of legal and social policies that protect it.
In the end, what guarantees at least the legal protection of the peaceful coexistence of divergent cultures is precisely a system of laws that proscribe overt social or legal discrimination on the basis merely of one’s ethnic or racial In this article the author talks about how Canadian society is not Just multicultural but also it is multiversal For years, Canada has defined itself as a multicultural country. But multiculturalism, as an idea, can be a problematic one.
In attempting to unite cultures under the banner of a common Canadian identity, multiculturalism tends to paper over differences. At its worst, it creates a kind of hierarchy. It locates white Canadians at the center of society and immigrants at the margins. Even in a multicultural country that tends to favour certain groups, many Canadians remain nxious about differences. Some continue to try to pin down the nature of Canadian identity. Who are we? is a commonly asked question.
But Canada is so much more than Just a multicultural society the article the problem with the multicultural community by David Solway focus on how Multiculturalism can offer tools to enhance the laws. If multiculturalism enriches our society then we need to be open to incorporating other points of views. However, we must not violate the spirit of multiculturalism when accommodating each other. As we grapple with the next phase of multiculturalism we need policies that go beyond ongs and dances.
We need policies that stop treating multiculturalism as a subsidiary to immigration Instead we should embrace it as an organic and local reality of Canadian identity. Multiculturalism, when practiced beyond lip service, will that benefits from its various positive ingredients. Nations that are built on common ethnicity or faith may appear more cohesive on the outside, but they remain stagnant and their minorities will never be accepted as equals. Multiculturalism can be messy and difficult but Canada is becoming wiser, more confident and more prosperous because of it.
