Accommodation Of Minorities Research Articles

Ethnolinguistic Attitudes as Drivers of Affective Polarization against Ethnic Parties: The Case of the Swedish People's Party in Finland

This study explores the link between ethnic divides and affective polarization by proposing that individual differences in outparty affect towards ethnic parties are associated with either prejudice against the ethnic group or dissatisfaction with minority accommodation at the sociotropic or egotropic level. We test this proposal through a case study of the Swedish People’s Party in Finland. Using survey data, we find that sociotropic concerns have the strongest link to affective evaluations of the ethnic party. However, among right-wing populist voters, egotropic concerns also stand out. The association between ethnic prejudice and evaluations of the SFP was weak and ambiguous.

Targeted Nativism: Ethnic Diversity and Radical Right Parties in Europe

AbstractRadical right parties are commonly associated with nativism and opposition to ethnic diversity, but there have been few systematic attempts to investigate this connection further. Noting that radical right parties in Europe do not express hostility towards all minorities or all immigrants, I investigate possible explanations for the difference in targeted hostility. I introduce the concept of targeted nativism, distinguishing between ethnic minorities that are excluded using the nativist cleavage, and those that are implicitly included in ‘the nation’. I propose three explanations for the targeted nativism, identifying minority outgroups based on: (1) ethnocultural differences, (2) minority political empowerment, or (3) ethnocultural minority accommodation. I examine these explanations using the examples of radical right parties in Sweden and Bulgaria, and further test these hypotheses with a new dataset that identifies targeted minorities. My findings indicate that more distinctive minorities are significantly more likely to be targeted by the radical right.

Psychological impediments are at the core of theIsraeli–Palestinianconflict

AbstractThe most puzzling aspect of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict is that, after 73 years of mutual violence, enmity, and suffering, it remains unresolved even when coexistence is inevitable and a two‐state solution remains the only viable option, in the context of a confederation between Israel, a future Palestinian state, and Jordan. Although there are many contentious issues that must be specifically addressed and resolved before a final agreement can be implemented, especially the dispute over the land, it is the psychological dimension of the conflict which directly impacts every conflicting issue and makes it increasingly intractable. To mitigate the conflict, we must first look into the elements that inform the psychological dimension—psychological resistance, historical experience and perception, entrenched ideologies, mutual delegitimization, and religious conviction—and how to alleviate them as prerequisites to finding a solution.Related ArticlesHarel‐Shalev, Ayelet. 2009. “Lingual and Educational Policy toward ‘Homeland Minorities’ in Deeply Divided Societies: India and Israel as Case Studies.”Politics & Policy37(5): 951–70.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747‐1346.2009.00206.x.Talal, Olga. 2022. “Bureaucrats as Policy Makers: Minority Accommodation and Exclusion in Ethnic Nation‐states.”Politics & Policy50(6): 1138–54.https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12507.Tusalem, Rollin F. 2015. “Ethnic Minority Governments, Democracy, and Human Rights.”Politics & Policy43(4): 502–37.https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12125.

Bristol School of Multiculturalism as Normative Sociology

The Bristol School of Multiculturalism is a political theory/sociology interdisciplinary approach to its subject matter, which has been described as a form of normative sociology. It is normative in the way that a lot of critical social theory (e.g., Foucauldian) is not and is not merely “deconstructive” but also a constructive engagement with the concerns of co-citizens. It, however, eschews the abstract, top-down universalism of Rawlsian liberal egalitarianism in favour of a context of national citizenship and pays particular attention to bottom-up political struggle. However, unlike some other activist-oriented perspectives or standpoints, it is neither antistate nor antinational but is guided by a sense of inclusive unity or the common good. Essential to this unity is “recognition” and institutional, not merely symbolic, accommodation of minorities and a perspective on the “multi” which goes beyond the black-white binary and a secularist exclusion of political claims-making by religious and ethnoreligious groups such as Muslims in western Europe. Critically, the Bristol School of Multiculturalism is not just normative in that it does normative sociology, but most importantly, it engages in political theory to justify its normative perspective against objections and rival normative positions. So, the Bristol School of Multiculturalism is perhaps not just a normative sociology but also a form of normative sociological theory.

Bureaucrats as policy makers: Minority accommodation and exclusion in ethnic nation‐states

AbstractWhy do some ethnic nation‐states employ simultaneously inconsistent policies toward ethnic minorities, accommodating them in one sphere but excluding them from another? This article argues that this incoherent treatment of minorities results from the delegation of authority to bureaucrats. Building on the principal‐agent approach and nationalism scholarship, this work develops a causal mechanism explaining the conditions under which bureaucrats can shift state policies toward ethnic minorities and the types of policy preferences they seek to materialize. Defining policy problems, strategically framing optimal solutions, and building support for policy initiatives are the mechanisms through which nonelected officials challenge the existing status quo and seek to shift state policies toward ethnic minorities. This theoretical framework is applied to education and land policies in Israel vis‐à‐vis the Palestinian Arab citizens to illustrate how entrepreneurial bureaucrats can bring about diverse policy outcomes toward the same minority.Related ArticlesBen‐Bassat, Avi, and Momi Dahan. 2018. “Biased Policy and Political Behavior: The Case of Uneven Removal of Elected Mayors in Israel.” Politics & Policy 46(6): 912–50. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12280.Harel‐Shalev, Ayelet. 2009. “Lingual and Educational Policy toward ‘Homeland Minorities’ in Deeply Divided Societies: India and Israel as Case Studies.” Politics & Policy 37(5): 951–70. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1747‐1346.2009.00206.x.Tusalem, Rollin F. 2015. “Ethnic Minority Governments, Democracy, and Human Rights.” Politics & Policy 43(4): 502–37. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12125.

Fragmentation of Political Authority and Bureaucratic Entrepreneurship: Explaining Instances of Minority Accommodation in Israel and Estonia

Why do some ethnic nation-states committed to preferential treatment of the dominant nation choose to accommodate their ethnic minorities in some realms? I argue that power struggles between elected and non-elected officials account for the variation in the treatment of ethnic minorities. Fragmentation of authority creates opportunities for entrepreneurial bureaucrats to initiate policy changes and lead to unanticipated outcomes. Drawing on nationalism studies in comparative politics and principal-agent scholarship in public administration, this article outlines a theoretical framework focused on domestic factors accounting for variation in state policies toward minorities in a novel way. I apply this framework to education policy in Israel and Estonia vis-à-vis the Palestinian Arab and Russian-speaking minorities. This article illuminates an empirical puzzle of minority accommodation under nationalist governments and explains the conditions under which it occurs, offering generalizable theoretical expectations for similar contexts.

The Ties that Bind: Kymlicka and the Problem of Political Unity in Multination States

As asserted by Will Kymlicka, the recognition and accommodation of national minorities leads to a dilemma. Indeed, if denying them these rights can contribute to their willingness to secede, allowing them to self-govern can also ultimately lead to the weakening of their ties with the state in which they are integrated. This tension well described in Kymlicka’s Multicultural Citizenship and in his later works remains nonetheless without an explicit solution. This text addresses this question by suggesting that the dialogical dynamic behind the recognition and accommodation of national minorities hides a purely political patriotism stemming from the neo-republican tradition that is complementary to the nationalist sense of attachment that members of national minorities will inevitably come to feel toward their societal culture.

High-resolution sequence stratigraphy in continental lacustrine basin: A case of Eocene Shahejie formation in the Dongying Depression, Bohai Bay Basin

Approximate 500 m deltaic-lacustrine successions were formed within 2 Ma in the Liangjialou area of the Dongying Depression in the Bohai Bay Basin (eastern China). However, few studies on sequence stratigraphy were previously conducted in the east of Liangjialou. In the present study, we integrate high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) seismic data with well-logging data to study the sequence stratigraphy and the depositional system.Our study shows that: (1) Four systems tracts have been identified in the study interval, they are HST, FSST, LST and TST. The HST has an ascending shelf-edge trajectory and aggradation to progradation stacking pattern. FSST has a descending shelf-edge trajectory and progradation to degradation stacking pattern. LST has a low-angle ascending shelf-edge trajectory and progradation to aggradation stacking pattern. TST has a backstepping shelf-edge trajectory and retrogradation stacking pattern. (2) Five high-resolution sequences (equal to 4th-order sequence), HRS1∼HRS5, were further subdivided within the 3rd-order LST. In addition, the depositional systems of HRS1∼HRS5 are significantly variable in 3D space. The delta and deep-water deposits in the north are larger than those in the south. (3) The formation of the sequence is controlled by both tectonics and dry-wet climatic cycles. The tectonic subsidence and high sediment supply in overall wet climate play a major role in the formation of the 3rd-order sequence. The higher frequency dry-wet climatic cycles dominate the formation of internal systems tracts. We further divide the climate of study interval into three stages that are excellent correlated to the specific systems tracts: Stage 1 (evaporation < precipitation) corresponds to HST; Stage 2 (evaporation > precipitation) corresponds to FSST; Stage 3 (evaporation < precipitation) corresponds to LST. (4) The basin morphology and source location mainly control the lateral variability of the depositional system of LST. Low paleotopography, narrow shelf width and steep slope dip in the north cause a large accommodation, and promote the development of the deltaic and deep-water deposits. In contrast, a high relief, wide shelf width and gentle slope cause only minor accommodation in the south, and limit the development of the deltaic and deep-water deposits.

Claiming Religious Freedom at the European Court of Human Rights: Socio-Legal Field Effects on Legal Mobilization

How do legal strategies at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) vary among activists in highly asymmetrical social positions? Social scientists have demonstrated that legal mobilization raises the pressure on states to provide broader minority accommodation. While this may be true, such outcome-oriented studies overlook the fact that judicial mobilization is itself deeply imbued with inequalities and divergent interests among diverse activists. We lack comparative studies to examine how such differences play out in litigation. Drawing on a qualitative in-depth study among Sikh, Muslim, Catholic, Evangelical, and secular advocacy groups involved in religious freedom disputes at the ECtHR, this article argues that claims making often is a balancing act between legal power relations and extra-legal commitments, which leads to variation in activists’ leverage to challenge legal marginalization. First, hostile legal environments discourage more easily activists with weaker transnational connections who are in vulnerable domestic positions. Second, while the most marginalized readily seek to fit identity narratives into dominant legal frames of religion, more powerful actors can target the core of legal principles and power distribution within the legal field as such. Even when unsuccessful in judicial outcomes, they might affect broader political and legal debates.

The La Laja spring system in the Argentine Precordillera: A conceptual model based on geochemical and isotopic data

The La Laja Spring System (LLSS) (31.34°S; 68.48°W) in the Argentine Precordillera is well-known for its low enthalpy thermal baths since pre-Columbian times and its surroundings full of travertine fields. This work focuses on geochemical and isotopic analysis of the thermal waters and their hydrological implications. We found a system with partially equilibrated waters with dominant Cl−–Na+ and subordinated HCO3−Ca2+(Mg2+) and SO42−Ca2+compositions, which seem affected to the basin fill composed of thick Cenozoic synorogenic deposits overlying early Paleozoic carbonate successions. Several cationic geothermometers suggest a deep reservoir with average temperatures reaching ~170 °C, while the silica geothermometers suggest a shallow reservoir at 91 °C. The average temperature of the springs is 28 °C and the low-geothermal gradients (~27 °C/km) in the region indicate a relatively deeper (~5500 m) reservoir and another shallower (~2500 m). The source of heat is related to the orogenic belt because this region is on top of the flat-slab subduction of the South-Central Andes, with an absence of active volcanism. Hence, this spring system is mainly affected by the relatively low-geothermal gradient within the Eastern Precordillera. The geochemical and isotopic characteristics O18/O16 as well as H2/H1 ratios of waters indicate meteoric source associated with evaporation in relation to strong aridity and secondary processes modifying the chemistry of waters is likely to be erased by any thermal end-member signature. Our conceptual model for the LLSS indicates the N–S trending Villicum-Zonda regional thrust and the minor accommodation faults within the Eastern Precordillera domain seem to behave as the preferential zone for recharging and latter thermal water rising.

Has the Covid-19 pandemic undermined public support for a diverse society? Evidence from a natural experiment in Germany

ABSTRACT The Covid-19 pandemic has led to widespread worries that the health crisis is resulting in generalized hostility towards minorities and reduced support for a diverse society. Relying on a large survey of diversity attitudes in Germany fielded before and during the pandemic, we employ a quasi-experimental design to evaluate whether such a trend has occurred among the general public. Past work suggests two competing expectations – one anticipating a rise in hostility grounded in threat theories, and one anticipating stability grounded in public opinion research and theories of longer-term value change. Empirical results reveal generally high assent to socio-demographic diversity and minority accommodation, and remarkable stability during the pandemic period. Additionally, survey vignettes show strong and equally stable anti-discrimination norms that are inclusive of Asian-origin populations. Overall, results suggest that surges in racist incidents during the pandemic do not reflect analogous surges in hostility within the population at large.

The paradox of minority accommodation: Eastern Europe after 30 years

The article discusses some of the paradoxes of minority accommodation in Eastern Europe 30 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. In the course of doing so, it focuses on four specific issues: volatility, sequencing, a shift from nationalism (group) to social conservatism (grid), and on the radicalisation of mainstream parties. Volatility is tied to the ebb and flow of shifts in the status quo associated with minority accommodation, which elucidates both why radical right mobilisation accelerates and why it loses steam. The expansion of minority rights leads to political ‘extreme reactions’. Sequencing matters since minority accommodation coincided with democratisation in Eastern Europe, so the struggle over minority rights is confounded with a concurrent regime change. Shifts from group to grid refer to the recent rise in socially conservative issues as sources of polarisation. Finally, extremist parties can threaten democratic pluralism. Nevertheless, large radicalised mainstream parties that control parliaments, not small extremist parties, subvert the institutions of democratic oversight. The threat originates from the mainstream and is exacerbated by the fact that liberal democracy has not ‘locked in’ in most of Eastern Europe.

Towards a Multicultural Community. The Accommodation of Ethnic and Religious Minorities in the ‘Migrant Comedy’ Genre

Towards a Multicultural Community. The Accommodation of Ethnic and Religious Minorities in the ‘Migrant Comedy’ Genre

Multiculturalism as a New Form of Nationalism?

AbstractWhat is often described today as neo‐nationalism or nationalist populism today arguably looks like the old nationalism. What is emerging as genuinely new are the identity‐based nationalisms of the centre left, sometimes called “liberal nationalism” or “progressive patriotism.” I offer my own contribution to the latter, which may be called “multicultural nationalism.” I argue that multiculturalism is a mode of integration that does not just emphasise the centrality of minority group identities but argues that integration is incomplete without remaking national identity so that all can have a sense of belonging to it. This multiculturalist approach to national belonging has some relation to liberal nationalism. It, however, makes not just individual rights but minority accommodation a feature of acceptable nationalism. Moreover, accommodation here particularly includes ethno‐religious groups in ways that are difficult for radical regimes of secularism. For these reasons, multicultural nationalism unites the concerns of some of those currently sympathetic to majoritarian nationalism and those who are prodiversity and minority accommodationist in the way that liberal nationalism (with its emphasis on individualism and majoritarianism) does not. It therefore represents the political idea and tendency most likely to offer a feasible alternative rallying point to monocultural nationalism.

Managing Ethno-National Diversity in Cyprus: Asymmetrical Federalism

AbstractThis article explains a normative political theory of asymmetrical federalism as it relates to the accommodation of national minorities within multinational states, using Cyprus as a case study. Many normative prescriptions emerging from traditional liberal and federal political theories and models rest on monist assumptions; therefore, there is a need to highlight the cultural and national limits of those theories and models in order to attain a democratic system in Cyprus that respects and promotes its bicommunal structure. It is suggested that multinational federalism in Cyprus necessitates constitutional asymmetry, which is likely to provide a basis for political accommodation. The article also demonstrates the necessity of multinational federalism to accommodate common and distinct identities by promoting a fuller understanding of the concept of “federal togetherness” and “federal separateness.” Such an understanding would better enable asymmetrical federalism to properly and feasibly adjust and regulate federal institutions in Cyprus.

L’angle mort de la « laïcité ouverte » : les processus de navigation et négociations dans le vécu religieux au Canada

Building on our critiques of the reasonable accommodation of religious minorities in Canada (see Selby et al., 2018a ; Beaman, 2017 ; Barras, 2016), this paper argues for attention to processes as intrinsic to everyday interactions of religiosity (following Tully, 1995, 2000 ; Van Quaquebeke et al., 2007). We contend that frameworks like Maclure and Taylor’s (2010) on ‘open’ and ‘closed’ secularism are useful for nation state comparison, but ineffectively account for the power asymmetries lodged within everyday religiosity. Their model protects the status quo ; it does not call institutional values or procedures into question, erases the navigation that occurs before an ‘accommodation’ is requested, and entrenches conflict as reflective of the experiences of religious minorities. Based on interviews with 90 self-defined Muslims in two cities, we propose a model of navigation and negotiation to better capture how religious practices are contextual and embedded in power relations.

Francophone Minorities in Canada: Trapped between the New/Old Minority Categories

Authors in various disciplines have adopted a dichotomous typology of “old and new minorities”. For many scholars and policy makers, this dual conception, which was notably introduced by Will Kymlicka, has further evolved into a three-pronged typology, where Indigenous peoples constitute a distinct category. This classification has had a significant influence on both theoretical and functional accommodation of minorities. It has provided a set of criteria for determining which fundamental rights, accommodation measures, and self-government mechanisms can legitimately be claimed by each category. In this article, the author argues that the dominant three-pronged classification of minorities—“national minorities”, “aboriginal peoples” and “ethnic minorities”—fails to capture the specificity and complexity of the French-speaking communities who do not enjoy territorial autonomy in Canada. The result is that Francophone minority communities outside of Quebec (which amount to one million French-speakers) effectively find themselves in a normative penumbra, as their fluid identity floats between an “ethnic minority” and a “national minority”. The dichotomous distinction between old and new minorities has rendered these communities largely invisible, and the discussion on their political autonomy, almost inexistent. The author suggests three tentative answers to what could be called “Kymlicka’s blind spot”. The first replaces the rigid categories with a spectrum, the second builds continuum inside the current categories and the third proposes to add another category to the existing typology. Any exploration of alternative conceptual schemes requires notably a clarification of the claims of autonomy made—or which could be made—by these linguistic minorities, including claims of territorial or non-territorial political autonomy. While political autonomy has not been recognized for francophone minority communities in Canada, the author discusses the legitimacy and potential forms of this possibility, often overlooked in favour of non-State efforts. Ultimately, this piece calls to rethink Kymlicka’s typology through a more nuanced and contextualized lens, in light of the Canadian experience.

In Europe’s Closet: the rights of sexual minorities in the Czech Republic and Slovakia

ABSTRACT This article explores the mechanisms of accommodation and backlash against a new identity group in the Czech Republic and Slovakia—LGBT. Minority demands spark political backlash because societal consensus lags behind the actual accommodation of sexual minorities. The legal framework of the European Union and international pressure groups further accelerate the process of accommodation and polarisation. Yesterday’s accommodation in Western Europe is today’s demand in Eastern Europe. The common European framework erodes the grip of domestic elites on minority rights and contributes to backlash by social conservative forces.

What language in education? Implications for internal minorities and social cohesion in federal Ethiopia

ABSTRACT The protection of language rights and linguistic groups is the cornerstone of the constitutional dispensation that Ethiopian has embarked upon almost two decades ago. The constitution declares that all Ethiopian language shall enjoy equal state recognition and allows for regional preference in language use. This article examines the laws and policies that regulate the use of languages in education and investigates their implication for the recognition of cultural diversity, accommodation of internal minorities and the promotion of social cohesion. In many aspects, the article argues, the language in education policy and the practice thereof represent an extension of the constitutional commitment to the equality of all language groups. The country has managed to develop a system that accommodates the demands of the different linguistic groups in areas of education. At the same time, it is problematic that the change in policy towards local languages is not accompanied by an equal appreciation of the role that Amharic continues to play, both as language of the federal government and as a means of national communication.

Governing and contesting marginality: Muslims and urban governance in the UK

ABSTRACT Sites of Muslim settlement in the UK are frequently portrayed as poorly integrated and governed areas – a situation that is often attributed to the excessive cultural and religious accommodation of Muslim minorities under flawed policies of state multiculturalism. Through a case study of an English city, Birmingham, home to the UK’s largest Muslim population outside of London, I argue that sites of Muslim settlement have, rather, been subject to extraordinary and punitive governing practices. These governing practices moreover rely for their legitimacy on the portrayal of these sites as poorly integrated and governed. Nevertheless, whilst areas of Muslim settlement have been subject to spatially focused, punitive forms of governance, these have not necessarily been fully coherent and they have also been contested.