State-mediated “hierarchy of diversities” and the freedom of individual self-identification: Towards a dynamic liberal model of muticulturalism

Abstract

Abstract The contemporary choice is between society structured as a set of ethnically determined communities and the liberal society, which acknowledges the uniqueness of each individual as well as his/her personal way of self-identification. There are two points which are extremely important in the discussion: first, no culture is ever homogeneous, and co-existence of different streams is an inevitable feature of social reality; second, culture contributes to action not by supplying the ultimate values toward which the action is oriented, but by shaping a repertoire of habits, skills and styles, from which people construct ‘strategies of action’. According to the liberal view, individuals, even if they belong to one ethnic group, seek to make their own choices, to form their own beliefs and judgments, while individual self-identification can be predetermined not only by one's belonging to the ethnic group, but also by one's gender, political views, etc. The idea of multiracial democracy contradicts the f...