by Jimmy G

Created on: March 20, 2010   Last Updated: March 22, 2010

Beyond Multiculturalism

A Face-To-Face Encounter With The Other

Introduction

In order to deal with the ethnic issue, governments implemented the policies of assimilation and multiculturalism. Policy-makers of assimilation want members of each ethnic group to lose their ethnic personality so they may easily adopt the values of the dominant culture; while those of multiculturalism desire that the members maintain their ethnic identities in the hope that the members will be fully integrated into society.

Both policies failed in their endeavour to accommodate the ethnic groups because the human being is not recognized for who he is. Only through a face-to-face encounter with the human individual as an Other – whose uniqueness is recognized and genuinely respected – can one expect to achieve a moral and just society.

The policy Of Assimilation And Why It Failed

The policy of assimilation was the first of the two ways to deal with ethnic minority groups or new immigrants. Under this policy, government officials imposed their cultural values on ethnic groups in the belief that the former’s values are right and true.

Ethnic groups were expected to give up their indigenous identity, if they hope to be counted as one of them. For example, if Juan wanted to be an American who eats hotdogs and hamburgers, listens and hums to American music, then he would have to give up his Mexican identity.

The policy of assimilation fails because it recognizes neither the uniqueness of the human being nor the identity of his ethnic group. Reporting on the American scene, William Branigan of the Washington Post observes that immigrants tend to cling on to their cultural values for the simple reason that they don’t want to become ‘too American’.

Ranjit Khutan, a staff writer for the university of Wolverhampton, notes that ethnic groups sense the dominant group’s biases and prejudices towards them. So, even if the members of a minority group absorb the prevailing culture, they will never be fully accepted. As a result of racism, ethnic groups are more determined to hold on to their own values.

Multiculturalism And Its Failed Response

As a response to the policy of assimilation, the British and the Canadian governments implemented the policy of multiculturalism which, in theory, recognizes the identities of ethnic groups. It views all ethnic groups as equals.

Under this policy, both governments hope to succeed in integrating the groups into the society

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