Multiculturalism

The Phenomenon of mass migration has made the tension between liberalism and multiculturalism one of the most hotly debated topics in contemporary political theory. Multiculturalists believe that members of minority groups should have the right to live their lives as they see fit. But what happens when certain minority values clash with those of the majority?

Multiculturalism expresses the notion that popular identity matters, and so attempts at ignoring or disparaging cultural identity are akin to harm. The repercussions of this ideal infer that it is inappropriate to expect everyone to adopt the practises, traditions, and values of the dominant group. The public policy implications impress that it is likely that the laws and institutions will tend to reflect the values of the dominant group, and it is a bias which has to be justified and undone.

It derives from principle of toleration; that we demonstrate a disposition to put up with things (or people) of which we disapprove, in situations where we have the capacity to intervene but choose not to. It is based on the idea that individuals have the right to autonomy- and should be free to determine their own ideals, exempt from interference. Therefore, the theory suggests that society should respect other culture’s view of the ‘good life-’ relating to the classically liberal notion ‘of every man to his own.’

But apart from the liberalist justification, there is perhaps another avenue which comes to the aid of multiculturalism, because what is ‘right’ for one person might not necessarily be ‘right’ for another. I may believe that killing animals and eating them is ethically acceptable, whereas you might believe that this act is inhumane. This raises the question whether the realm of morality ‘different.’ Is there a definitive answer to morality? Can we defend the idea of a single moral truth? Is the diversity a sign that there is no single truth, just a matter of taste?

Subjectivism, suggests that every individual will have different moral stances according to their experiences from which they derive their opinions. The corollary of this is that we can both be correct in our assumptions regarding what is ‘right.’ This lends weight to the multliculturalist argument because many advocate that individual differences, often culturally given, mean that there is no cultural reality. Partly because there is no absolute value to our actions implying that culture is a matter of personal taste, meaning that we cannot seek to alter the outlook of others, and also because individuals have a fundamental right to maintain their beliefs, multiculturalism has so much to offer.