What Happens When the Unstoppable Force of Multiculturalized Immigration Meets the Immovable Object of the Equality Principle

Abstract

The final communique coming out of last May’s Group of Seven meeting suggests that Europe is ready to distance herself from the “Open Borders” movement. This is a welcome development, to be sure, but it unfortunately does not mean that Europe has arrived at a consensus on matters of immigration policy. Far from it. The acrimony has not so much disappeared as shifted – from “open borders” to “open societies,” from questions of immigration (Must we let them in?) to those of integration (How to deal with them once they’re here?). The battle lines are becoming increasingly clear as multiculturalists face off against nationalists – the former armed with facile slogans and ad hominems, the latter handicapped by poorly-articulated positions. The debate, as one might expect, is rarely enlightening. Now would therefore seem a good time to take a big step back, and a very deep breath, and return to first principles. Exactly how much may a state that claims to be liberal ask of its newcomers in terms of integration and assimilation? The answers will likely surprise you.