Multiculturalism and National Identity - Peter Kivisto

Augustana College professor, Peter Kivisto, on perceived problems with multiculturalism, what countries can gain from a multicultural population, and how multiculturalism may impact national identity

[thezeitgeist]

"Where we find terrorist act its usually because multiculturalism isn't present"

Actually terrorism tends to occur in all the most multicultural countries. Britain, France, Australia etc.

[Gill]

Anyone with any sense can see that it has failed

[EVALLOYD]

I live in France. I worked in an engineering company and we sometimes employed temps if there were very short deadlines for a project. One day a young Muslim draughtsman came to work on an assignment, and after a couple of days some of the male workers came to see the boss for they could no longer use the male toilets for when they wanted to use the "loo", they often found the young Muslim guy, either washing his feet in the washbasin or with his mat rolled out with him kneeling down praying and turned around.Before praying, Muslims have to perform a purification ritual called Wudu, requiring that they wash their face, hands, arms, and feet. They pray 5 times a day. What one has to remember is this, France is a secular country and has been since 1905. Meaning separation of church and state. All religions are accepted but in the private sphere and not in the workplace. The thing is, in the company there were other Muslim colleagues who never did this and were just as annoyed as the non-Muslim staff, they thought he was being provocative for Islam makes provisions if people can't pray at the specific times. I talked to the young man on a few occasions, and his views on how some of the women staff were dressed were to say the least very derogative. The boss didn't renew his contract and told the temp agency why. They told him that he wasn't the first employer to complain. I say this, if you settle in a country whose culture, religion, traditions are different from your own, you are the one who has to adapt and not the other way round.

[mercsr]

Ouch! Seems to me that Germany and UK are very multicultural yet they have plenty of conflict!

[Aguijon]

IT is NOT the left and multiculturalism that imports inmigrants (cheaper workers from abroad). It is the free market trying to get cheaper workers. Free market does not care about saving your culture. Making the most profit is all that matters.

[davecullins]

So multiculturalism doesn't work if the majority in the country doesn't want multiculturalism but still has a multicultural society.

[MoeMerkin]

The most marginalized group in the world is the individual.

[onion_turtle]

He is basically saying how it would be good if everybody would be as cosmopolite as he is, but what does he suggest to do with people who don't want to? i think i've heard it before, as far as i remember it was called gulag
his arguments are also ridiculous - people get bombed and molested, and he talks about how sikh need to wear special religious hats
go to Japan and tell them how good Europe is living because of multiculturalism

[colindant]

Suppose two people are randomly allocated the same accommodation. One wants noise all day, and the other wants quiet all day. Will they be able to co-exist in the same accommodation? I doubt it.

[scottmyers]

As it turns out, Peter doesn't know what the hell he's talking about.

[TheScaryTruthCatalyst]

In 2007 my street was populated with only local families. By 2022 the are several 'refugee' families with large numbers of children. In another 20 years all the locals will be be gone. Don't tell me that this isn't 'population replacement'...

[callspreadzero]

Humorous.. The most homogeneous societies rank as some of the highest functioning societies. While several other homogeneous societies rank high on the “happiness” scale. Look at Denmark and go north.

Japan and Korea are both extremely homogenous as well.

[paulmakinson]

France did not construct it's identity on immigration as did the US but rather on a very long history (relative to the US). So it has a harder time dealing with assimilation of immigrants with widely differing cultures, specifically, Muslims. Moreover, up to 20% of Muslim people in France consider that the French values of secularism, freedom of expression (including the right to offend), tolerance, and generally following the national motto of "Liberté, égalité, fraternité" (Freedom, equality, fraternity) are incompatible with their religious beliefs. This has culminated in the "Charlie Hebdo" murders and more recently in the beheading of a school teacher trying to teach the significance of freedom of expression and tolerance to his class. How do we deal with this problem?

[normahopkin]

Interesting, I feel that different conclusions may be found now in 2022.The rise of migrants over the last 2-3 years in UK has reached a critical percentage, one which is changing the ethnic landscape and there is now a real threat. I doubt if a country as large as America, will have the same problem, or at least not anytime soon. While many migrants integrate well, and also their cultures, the numbers of some have quietly grown to such huge proportions and are gathered in specific areas. UK, for example now has Shariah Law in many places. Anyone in that area, including historical, native British, MUST obey Shariah law. Doesn't matter if it's against UK Law.

If people migrating to a country do not develop any love or commitment to that country: (that's increasingly become the case in the UK, where whole streets, areas, villages and towns no longer have native British populations), then real clashes of culture occur, especially where the Law of the land is involved. This isn't leading anywhere good. I hope that the huge Land mass and much larger populations of US and Canada will prevent the same thing happening.

[Ras_Spinoza]

Not all cultures ask for exemptions. Those I find inimical to peaceful co-existence are the cultures that demand exemptions within the public sphere..

[missj.]

If immigrants in Canada prefer multiculturalism to hockey, I am not sure they integrate so well :P.

[haochengloucosmopolitan]

What I understood of multiculturalism is by just putting different cultures together, doesn't necessarily mean multiculturalism, this is more like a physical change. However, the real multiculturalism is a chemical change.

[whatshendrix]

This is like a 15 minute South Park skit.

[scotthullinger]

Hmm ... So terrorist actions happen in nations where multiculturalism is NOT present, huh? I don't think so -
I always thought terrorism occurs because the people involved in such acts have no respect for the nation which has willingly adopted them.
Many such people believe they can force the nation which has taken them in to become accustomed to their culture, when the real attitude of such people should be that any person who wants to form part of another nation must recognize that the nation as a WHOLE comes first, before recognizing particular individuals within the whole. Isn't this the so-called "melting pot" idea? THIS is what the current Marxist Democrat party hopes to achieve, in order to DESTROY the identity of the melting pot, and force a sort of conformity to ZERO conformity. That is why we are now constantly at each other's throats.
A lack of multiculturalism is I believe based on ONE thing only: A lack of tolerance for individuals who are different from you. The ones who commit such terrorist acts are the ones who refuse to adopt the culture of the nation which took them in - NOT the other way around. And when the "natives" commit terrorist acts, it is only those whose goal is the destruction of the nation as founded, based on blatant lies which they create regarding their very own nation -
For example, citizens who eagerly adopt the ideas of Critical Race Theory, and several other similar ideologies.

[Patrickstarrrrr]

It doesn’t take a phd in sociology to see how miserable multiculturalism has failed. Now we all have to live with the repercussions of this failed ideology