Politics Of Multiculturalism Research Articles

DAVID L. HOSTETTER. Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics. (Studies in African American History and Culture.) New York: Routledge. 2006. Pp. x, 214. $70.00

DAVID L. HOSTETTER. Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics. (Studies in African American History and Culture.) New York: Routledge. 2006. Pp. x, 214. $70.00

Letters to the Editor

To the Editor: Francis Nesbitt's review of Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics in the March 2007 JAH misconstrues my central thesis: As a renewed form of American civil religion, multicultural politics recognize the broadest representation of cultural traditions in the national political discussion. This phenomenon can be traced to the praxis born from the clash of integrationist universalism and Pan-Africanism within the antiapartheid movement. (Movement Matters, p. 3) According to Nesbitt I do not recognize that “TransAfrica launched the fsam [Free South Africa Movement]” (ibid.). On page 144 I state that “TransAfrica's role in creating and leading the Free South Africa Movement marked the culmination of a long struggle to assert an effective African-American voice in the realm of U.S. foreign policy debate.” Nesbitt claims that I “privilege” (ibid.) the American Committee on Africa (acoa) and American Friends Service Committee (afsc) over the Council on African Affairs, the African Liberation Support Committee, TransAfrica, and the Congressional Black Caucus. I include references to all of these groups.

A DIASPORIC OVERCOAT?

Starting as an analysis of the relation between (self)‐naming and (dis)‐affection in Jhumpa Lahiri’s novel The Namesake, this paper suggests that the problems described and their critical reception can be seen to reflect more substantial problems permeating contemporary discussions around so‐called immigrant or diasporic literature and culture, and wider debates around multiculturalism and identity politics. It argues that discussions of diasporic literature are limited by the use of diaspora as an exclusive explanatory framework, neglecting the manifold, relational, and potentially conflicting dimensions of difference in cultural groups, as well as intercultural and transcultural differences and processes of differentiation. If used thus, the concept of diaspora does not suffice to explain and theorize some key aspects of what has come to be called diasporic literature.

Multicultural Politics: Racism, Ethnicity, and Muslims in Britain. By Tariq Modood. With a foreword by, Craig Calhoun. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2005. Pp. 232.

<i>Multicultural Politics: Racism, Ethnicity, and Muslims in Britain</i>. By Tariq Modood. With a foreword by, Craig Calhoun. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2005. Pp. 232.

L’identité francophone, la francophonie et la canadianité multiculturelle contemporaine : vers un renouvellement des formes de solitude ?

In the second half of the XXth century, the identity and the collective representation that the Canadian Federation had of itself as a social and national community was completely reshaped. First the period of the French Canada had to be repudiated. Then it was the whole Eurocentric construction, grounded on the theory of the two founding people, which was dismissed. Eventually Canada asserted its collective identity in the 1980s as a multicultural American society.In this context, one may wonder what the place and influence of French speaking Canadians can be today, confronted as they are with the increasingly organised claims of Québec and the overwhelming pressure of an American-ness modelled on the example given by the USA.We propose to confront in the following pages the various ways in which this question spells itself: Will Francophonie be displaced by the larger concept of Canadian-ness spawned by multicultural politics, or is it compatible with it? And is it possible to hold with Paul Martin that Canada is the first post-modern state in history?

`What a wonderful world!': On the `touristic ways of seeing', the knowledge and the politics of the `culture industries of otherness'

Focusing on three ethnographic events (an Italian charter tour to Pakistan, a shopping event in a village replica in New Delhi and a festival of culture and travel in Italy) this article looks into the contemporary `culture industries of otherness' that is, those commercial events promoting knowledge about the world in its diversity. Criss-crossing visual anthropology, tourism anthropology and scholarly work on the politics of multi-culturalism the article will introduce the notion of the `touristic ways of seeing'. As modalities for contemplating cultural difference in the contemporary globalized habitats of the world such ways of seeing are connected to wider representational practices linked to the consumption of films, television and advertisement. Through their `form', they present us a world knowable by seeing and enjoying it. Yet, as I will discuss at the end of the article, this knowledge hides questions of production, power and politics and thus appears counterproductive to the creation of dialogue across cultural borders.

The Politics of Multiculturalism. A Ukrainian-Canadian Memoir (review)

The Politics of Multiculturalism. A Ukrainian-Canadian Memoir (review)

Movement matters: American antiapartheid activism and the rise of multicultural politics

Introduction: Through the Glass Starkly: Americans Confront Apartheid 1. For the Freedom Struggle is One: The American Committee on Africa 2. Liberation in One Organization: The American Friends Service Committee 3. Black Power on Embassy Row: TransAfrica 4. Lost in the Stars: Apartheid and American Popular Culture 5. If They're Not Free, We're Not Free: Antiapartheid Activism and the Integration of American Civil Religion. Conclusion: Now Face to Face? Opposing Apartheid, Proposing Multiculturalism

Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics

Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics

Covering Multiculturalism: Popular Images and the Politics of a Nation as Reflected on the Covers of Maclean’s and L’Actualité

How have images of immigration and multiculturalism been depicted on Canadian magazine covers and what do they say about the national politics of immigration and multiculturalism? A discursive and visual analysis of the covers and articles in Maclean’s (from January, 1960 to May, 2006), and to a lesser extent in L’Actualité (from 1976 to May 2006), reveals a dualistic pattern depicting multicultural and immigrant representations as either the successful, contributing, and model “other” or the threatening, oppositional, and problematic “other.” Our analysis goes beyond this binarism and exposes the intersections of age, class, status, sexuality, and racialization as integral to the multicultural context. Yet, as a concept, multiculturalism has not necessarily been evident in the public and media imaginary of Canada. Quelles sont les images véhiculées par les couvertures de revues canadiennes sur l’immigration et le multiculturalisme et que disentelles à propos des politiques nationales sur ces questions? Une analyse discursive et visuelle des couvertures et des textes de Maclean’s (de janvier 1960 à mai 2006) et, à un moindre degré, de L’Actualité (de 1976 à mai 2006) révèlent un motif dualistique des représentations multiculturelles et immigrantes en tant qu’un «autre» présenté soit comme un modèle de contribution sociale et de succès, soit comme une menace, une opposition et un prob-lème. Notre analyse va au-delà de ce binarisme et met en lumière l’interconnection de la classe, du statut social, de la sexualité et de la racialisation comme faisant partie intégrante du contexte multiculturel. Cependant, au Canada, le multiculturalisme n’est pas un concept évident dans l’imaginaire public ni dans celui des médias.

The UN, Minority Rights and Gender Equality: Setting Limits to Collective Claims

Defining the limits of minority rights poses a significant challenge to human rights norms. At the heart of current debates on multicultural citizenship is a concern to recognise the distinct cultural identifies of minority communities through legal mechanisms that allow for group-differentiated citizenship. Such differentiation, however, may bring with it the possibility of increasing segregation, the potential not for solidarity or cohesion but rather for fragmentation and conflict. This so-called ‘balkanisation’ effect can have particularly damaging consequences for women within minority communities, cut off from supports and networks within majority or minority communities. In recent years, the politicisation of multicultural politics and the increasing moral panic surrounding identity politics have fuelled public concerns that group-differentiated citizenship, given legal effect through protections of minority rights, threatens the bonds of community necessary for social cohesion. In turn, cultural symbols or signifiers of group difference, such as distinct dress codes or separate systems of religious based personal law, have become markers both of difference and resistance. This article explores the CEDAW Committee's response to cultural claims, in the context of the reservations dialogue and argues that it provides a useful model through which to explore the possibility of more just multicultural arrangements in states.

Competing interests: Toronto's Chinese immigrant associations and the politics of multiculturalism

AbstractSocial service agencies and advocacy groups have played an integral role in mediating between the Asian ethnic populations. In the Canadian institutional setting, associations become a means of political expression. Canada incorporates new immigrants into its national institutions. However, these neo‐liberal institutions and policies have not redressed major problems arising in the settlement process. Under Canada's discourse of enlightened multiculturalism, social service agencies are funded to help to integrate diverse peoples. The policy of multiculturalism meshes well with the liberal ideology underlying loose coupling, encouraging people to retain their cultural identities while settling and participating in national processes. These policies are designed to be sensitive to clients' cultural backgrounds; however, there are unforeseen consequences. In this system, different groups are granted different amounts of social, cultural and economic capital along with differential access to this capital, which affects their position and potential for action in other arenas. In particular, we find that the social service approach treats new Chinese immigrants as similar, thereby fostering competition between subgroups over leadership, funds and representation. Our data come from interviews with key figures in the Chinese‐Canadian community and associations, and reviews of press and other media. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Inclusão indígena e exclusão dos afro-descendentes na América Latina

Este artigo analisa as causas da disparidade nos direitos coletivos conquistados por grupos afro-latinos durante as recentes iniciativas de reformas relacionadas à cidadania multicultural na América Latina. Em vez de atribuir o maior êxito dos índios na conquista desses direitos a diferenças no tamanho da população e a níveis mais elevados de identidade de grupo ou de organização dos movimentos indígenas, a autora sustenta que a principal causa da disparidade está no fato de os direitos serem atribuídos levando em conta uma identidade de grupo distinta, definida por meio de critérios étnicos ou culturais. Os índios estão, em geral, melhor posicionados do que a maioria dos afro-latinos para reivindicar uma identidade de grupo étnico, distinta da cultural nacional, e por isso foram mais bem-sucedidos na conquista dos direitos coletivos. A autora sugere ainda que uma das conseqüências potencialmente negativas da vinculação dos direitos coletivos à diferença cultural é que isso pode levar os grupos indígenas e afro-latinos a privilegiar, como fundamento para a mobilização política, temas relacionados ao reconhecimento cultural, em detrimento dos temas centrados na discriminação racial.

White Backlash and the Politics of Multiculturalism

This is a review of the book 'White Backlash and the Politics of Multiculturalism' by Roger Hewitt. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 176 pp. $29.99 paper. ISBN: 0521520894.

White Backlash and the Politics of Multiculturalism and Radical Islam Rising: Muslim Extremism in the West

White Backlash and the Politics of Multiculturalism. By Hewitt Roger. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2005. 172p. $75.00 cloth, $29.99 paper. Radical Islam Rising: Muslim Extremism in the West. By Quintan Wiktorowicz. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield, 2005. 248p. $75.00 cloth, $26.95 paper. A book on the white backlash to multicultural politics and another on recruitment to a radical Islamist group seem odd choices to examine together, but the resulting dialogue emphasizes the extraordinary value of comparative methods in general and ethnographic research in particular. In Radical Islam Rising, Quintan Wiktorowicz asks why rational individuals would join a high-risk organization such as al-Muhajiroun, a radical Islamist movement based in the UK. Joining entails high risk because members are “targets of stigma, harassment, retaliation, and even more extreme sanctions such as loss of a job, injury, or death” (p. 206; also pp. 45–77). Rational-actor models, he argues, cannot explain why thousands of individuals were attracted to the movement. (The group was formally disbanded in late 2004 but likely continues underground.) Wiktorowicz offers a five-stage model, and the chapters are organized accordingly.

Ethnicity, Muslims and higher education entry in Britain1

Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size Notes 1. This is a revised version of a paper from the ISIM (International Institute for the Study of Islam) Review, 16 August 2005, The Netherlands. 2. See Modood (2005 Modood, T. 2005. Multicultural politics: racism, ethnicity and Muslims in Britain, Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh Press. [Google Scholar]). 3. Not to mention the ‘Asian Other’, a term which includes disparate groups such as Sri Lankans, Vietnamese, Malayasians but which are relatively small in absolute terms and so working out the proportion of the age group in higher education is less reliable. The same may apply to the Chinese in Table 1 for their representation is much lower than all other data has suggested so far (see Modood, 2005 Modood, T. 2005. Multicultural politics: racism, ethnicity and Muslims in Britain, Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh Press. [Google Scholar]). 4. The dataset in question was reanalysed recently with results showing that ‘bias’ against ethnic minorities was confined to Law for all groups and to Pakistanis in most subjects (see HEFCE 2005 HEFCE ( 2005 ) Higher Education Admissions: assessment of bias. HEFCE research paper 2005/47, December . [Google Scholar]). Why the HEFCE analysis differs from Shiner and Mood 2002 has not yet been established. 5. The Leverhulme Migration and Ethnicity Research Programme Project on gender, social capital and differential outcomes. See www.bris.ac.uk/Depts/Sociology/leverhulme.

Catechizing Culture: Missionaries Aymara, and the "New Evangelization."

Nearly five centuries after the first wave of Catholic missionaries arrived in the New World to spread their Christian message, contemporary religious workers in the Bolivian highlands have begun to encourage Aymara Indians to return to traditional ritual practices. All but eradicated after hundreds of years of missionization, the old ways are now viewed as local cultural expressions of Christian values. In order to become more Christian, the Aymara must now become more Indian. This groundbreaking study of the contemporary encounter between Catholic missionaries and Aymara Indians is the first ethnography to focus both on the evangelizers and the evangelized. Andrew Orta explores the pastoral shift away from liberation that dominated Latin American missionization up until the mid-1980s to the recent theology of inculturation, which upholds the beliefs and practices of a supposedly pristine Aymara culture as indigenous expressions of a more universal Christianity. Addressing essential questions in cultural anthropology, religious studies, postcolonial studies, and globalization studies, Catechizing Culture is a sophisticated documentation of the widespread shift from the politics of class to the politics of ethnicity and multiculturalism.

The Politics and Perils of Peoplehood

Boundaries and Belonging: States and Societies in the Struggle to Shape Identities and Local Practices. Edited by Joel S. Migdal. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004. 374 pp., $80.00 (ISBN: 0-521-83566-6). Mestizo Democracy: The Politics of Crossing Borders. By John Francis Burke. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2004. 320 pp., $19.95 (ISBN: 1-58544-346-8). Stories of Peoplehood: The Politics and Morals of Political Membership. By Rogers Smith. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. 248 pp., $65.00 cloth (ISBN: 0-521-81303-4), $23.99 paper (ISBN: 0-521-52003-7). Toward Assimilation and Citizenship: Immigrants in Liberal Nation-States. Edited by Christian Joppke, Ewa Morawska. New York: Palgrave-Macmillan, 2003. 272 pp., $90.00 (ISBN: 1-4039-0491-X). Who Are We: The Challenges to America's National Identity. By Samuel Huntington. New York: Simon and Schuster, 2004. 448 pp., $27.00 cloth (ISBN: 0-684-87053-3), $16.00 paper (ISBN: 0-684-87054-1). Who are we ? How did we come to be or to see ourselves as “we” and others as “they?” What or who else could, or should, “we” become? In today's world, few questions carry greater political weight than these. These are the questions that have and continue to fuel bloody clashes between clans, tribes, ethnic groups, regions, nations, and states around the globe. In less bloody but no less significant terms, these are the questions that underlie policy debates in the United States and elsewhere on topics ranging from immigration policy and affirmative action to dual citizenship, bilingual education, and the war on terror. These are also the questions that Europeans are debating as they continue down the rocky path of unification—a path made challenging not only by the persistent attachment to distinct national identities among and within member states, but also by the growing cultural diversity of those states as a result of migration into Europe. None of these questions is new, but various circumstances and events have catapulted these issues of “peoplehood” into political and academic prominence. These circumstances include the ending of the Cold War, which, despite predictions to the contrary, ushered in an era of global instability as existing constructions of peoplehood gave way to new configurations or reconfigurations of political and sociocultural belonging. Meanwhile, unprecedented migration of people across state borders has created diverse societies throughout the world and given rise to the politics of multiculturalism that accompany them. Advances in communications and transportation technology have facilitated the fostering and maintenance of transnational attachments and ties. A plethora of global organizations and linkages, from the European Union and an emergent international human rights regime to the countless groups and institutions that make up transnational civil society, provides new levels of attachment and identification. For …

Multiculturalism online

This article is concerned with the politics of multiculturalism as encountered on the internet. Theoretically, it examines the different normative positions vis-à-vis multiculturalism in the works of Charles Taylor, Jürgen Habermas, Jeremy Waldron and Nancy Fraser. Three main dilemmas emerge: essentialism or fluidity of identities; universalism or particularism; and recognition or redistribution. These are empirically examined subsequently through online portals developed by four minority communities in the UK. Eight portals, developed by black British, Indian/South Asian, Chinese and Muslim communities were analysed with a view to understanding how such dilemmas are understood in online environments, taken to represent a version of everyday political conduct. The analysis focused on addressees/interlocutors, communicative forms and users, indicating that all multicultural dilemmas are enacted online. Following an agonistic model of politics, the article suggests that multicultural politics should be understood as an open arena for the struggle between these dilemmas.

“GET OFF YOUR KNEES”

This article examines perceptions of British-Muslims deployed by “print media public intellectuals” (PMPI). It argues that PMPI embody a particular type of “mediatized intellectual” whose public discourse on Muslims is crucial in determining how issues emerging from the politics of multiculturalism are understood. Adopting a “theory of argumentation” (Richardson, 2001) derived from a critical discourse analysis methodology (CDA), it investigates the political content of messages disseminated by (1) conservative nationalist and (2) secular liberal PMPI through their newspaper opinion columns. The findings suggest that PMPI argumentation ranges from an overt hostility to a qualified discrimination (the former through exclusive accounts of belonging and the latter through a combative/civilising liberalism), and that—moreover—there is a convergence between these two positions in their anti-Muslim sentiment and desire to regulate the lives of ethnic Others (Hage, 1998). There are four parts to this article: the first part outlines what a public intellectual is and where PMPI stand in relation to this; the second part discusses some Muslim attempts to elicit forms of recognition from the state under a rubric of multiculturalism; the third part outlines the chosen CDA schema of analyses and PMPI output; and the fourth part concludes by encouraging us to recognise and examine further the importance of PMPI argumentation in public discourse.