Multiculturalism is the presence of people from various social, cultural, and racial backgrounds who have integrated to form a community in the same area. The idea of diversity as a tool to a means of belonging connects with a variety of challenges. The environment produced by multiculturalism is extremely vulnerable to societal phenomena including governance and perceptions of racial equality and superiority. This paper's research focuses on how racism and liberal democratic institutions can coexist peacefully in Canada thanks to multiculturalism. The radical foundation of the Canadian nation is based on the convergence of immigrants to constitute the general population of Canada. The ethnic and cultural backgrounds of the general population in Canada backslides a situation where a dilemma is created. The dilemma begs to settle the imbalance that exists mainly to satisfy all the needs of every single distinct culture that make up the multicultural society in Canada. Such a situation is volatile considering the scope of diversification required to strike a balance in the situations of everyday life and the needs of everyone in the Canadian society. Subsequent generations have experimented the success of the multicultural merge in Canada (Ibbitson, 2010). Nevertheless, the challenges of racism and liberal democratic systems still exists today in the Canadian contemporary society. Scholars have explored the exception of domination by state of the so called Canadian white nationals of Canada in comparison to new citizenships and equality before the law. The overhaul of the Charter of Rights in Canada was based on multiculturalism, accommodation and overview of policies and laws that affect the minority in the Canadian society (Peritz, 2010)
The worldwide view of multiculturalism begs to question its failure or success. Observing the multiculturalism experiments in European countries like Germany and Netherlands give a popular opinion suggesting that multiculturalism has failed. Countries like Australia and Canada are no exception despite gaining popular support to strengthen its existence. (Peritz, 2010). Marginalization in Canada consists of the Anglo French domination and the immigrants in relation the technique of dominance through the system of governance. The social construction of ethnic differences is created by the minority of visible minorities as immigrants. Marginalization therefore constitutes whiteness re-branded from the image of colonialism and racism to a cosmopolitan tolerated whiteness. Multiculturalism is viewed as a communal integration that is organised and planned. Through the outlook view of the national eye, multiculturalism is objectively viewed as the organization of the marginalized minorities. Considering the historical context in the 1960s, the dominance of white supremacy was under domestic challenge. It was a resolve against increased demands for people of colour, the legitimacy gained by Aboriginal people from the United Nations, the uprisings for liberalisation of immigration and the equitability and citizenship. Furthermore, there was rise in the discounting scientific theories concerning race and racism. As a result, there was creation of the need to distance from racial segregation policy. (Bannerji, 2012)
Multicultural whiteness was thus considered by the white supremacists as it was viewed as a solution in Canada. The recasting of the national identity was a safer bet to be considered in comparison to pluralism with the result expected to infer the white majority as majority. The aim was to create a white tolerant society and cosmopolitanism while the other minorities identified as intolerant. Multiculturalism disguises the prolongation of white privilege. The intention was to dump the white’s anxiety on the issue of racism onto the minorities in Canada. The memory of the past colonial aboriginals’ segregation of minorities influenced the redefinition of the concept of multiculturalism and racism to the assumption that racial communities are the bearers of racial and ethnic differences. The concept of multiculturalism aimed to suppress race and racism and hence promote the multicultural interaction. The view of multiculturalism intents was also to neutralise the socioeconomic, cultural and political struggles of the minorities such as the people of colour. Inversion of toleration was at its best as it was in the pluralism of black people and civil rights movements in the United States. The state interprets cultural barriers of visible minorities as barriers to social and cultural integrations. Further, the state considers multiculturalism as means to promote national unity and not transformation despite the extent of its inequalities and racial discrimination. The state created leadership positions for ethnic spoke persons derailing the struggle by people of colour. (Bannerji, 2012)
The construction of the Canadian national identity with a social and cultural form is aggrieved by various challenges. The origin of the Canadian nation is attributed to its colonisation that created an Anglo-French two tier nation. French and British nationalism and separatism ideologies led to fuelling of racism. Multiculturalism was therefore used to quench the existing antagonism between the English and the French. Multiculturalism took shape to integrate and infuse different cultures to dilute the fragmentation that existed in Canada. Inclusion of minority group migrations was encouraged expecting a smooth integration with the original white nationals of Canada. The obliteration of the history of contest between the rivalries of colonial powers was ideologically implemented to be achieved by the inclusion of a multicultural society. Experiences of the visible minority betray the structure and organisation of the multicultural society. The skin colour signifies inferiority like observed in countries like South Africa and ‘apartheid rule’ and historically the ‘Stars of David’ Judaism and Nazi rule. Whiteness translated to superiority, moral civilization, modernity and freedom. Multiculturalism in reality thus promoted inequality to cultural differences and diversity (Thobani, 2008).
The minority immigrants were inserted right in the middle dialogue of the Anglo French rivalry. The problems inherited by the white Canadian nationals created an even more sensitive nation towards the inequality, racism and democratic liberalism. The ideological distinction of the administration governance and the treatment relations between the people was heightened especially among the minority cultures in the Canadian community. Multiculturalism is thus viewed as a neutralisation to the power of rival governance rather than an organisation of the distinction of race, gender and class. The visibility of the minorities was now a great concern especially among the immigrants who desired colonial ethnocentrism and racism be obscured from the rising cultural differences that existed in the Canadian society. Consequently, the inequality existing between class, race and politics should be eliminated. The state plays an advent role in multiculturalism by encouraging immigration of different ethnic diversities into Canada. The state however fails to address the policies that classify immigrants profiling them to the extent that it raises concern among the minorities in Canada. According to Charles Taylor, multiculturalism can wrongly relate to the French settlers who seemed to have been reduced into a minority group. As such, there existed distinction between a ‘first level of diversity’ between new immigrants and white nationals and ‘deep diversity’ between white Canadian nationals and new white immigrants. Bernnaji criticized the dual diversity viewpoints concealing the history of colonialism against amplification of racism. The viewpoints of Charles Taylor ignore the contemporary organisation of power in Canada where diverse generations have taken power. The argument by Tylor does not consider the history of the Canadian nation and rarely gives an insight to the evidences of deep diversity.(Thobani, 2008)
In my view, multiculturalism has not transformed the radical foundation of the Canadian nation. There is a grave danger arising from the discourses of multiculturalism like new age racism and segregation. Existence of racism can result to ugly disputes that might prompt the rise of a war considering the awareness that exists on human rights in the contemporary society. The conditions for adaptation of multiculturalism were the conformity to demand for equality of human rights. These violations of human rights still exist today as a challenging factor to multiculturalism. There is need for changes in the aspects of social activism in relation to multiculturalism. There should exist international policies and activist groups that are dedicated to fight for the rights of multiculturalism. As for the York’s cultural week, suggestions to incorporate a forum of a multicultural expression of experiences should be included. The forum should be moderated by the state justice and judicial systems to give a platform offer free and fair insight and actionable course taken against any offence regarding multiculturalism. The society is a delicate system. The human rights and equality of law is the only mirror to which the world should respect as a differentiation scale. Multiculturalism should not be a malicious course of discourse between the physical and personal opinions of race and colour. When human rights and equality to law is respected, democracy is upheld and consequently eliminates the notion of dominance.
References
Himani, Bannerji. (2012). “On the Dark Side of the Nation: Politics of Multiculturalism and the State of “Canada”.Trent University: Canada
Ingrid Peritz, Joe Friesen. (2010). When multiculturalism doesn't work. Retrieved from: The Globe and Mail. Published Friday, Oct. 01 2010, 3:25 PM EDT Last updated Monday, Jun. 04 2012, 5:10 PM EDT
John Ibbitson, Joe Friesen (2010). Conservative immigrants boost Tory fortunes. Ottawa/Toronto — The Globe and Mail: Published Monday, Oct. 04 2010, 6:15 AM EDT, Last updated Thursday, Aug. 23 2012, 4:19 PM EDT
Sunera Thobani.(2008). Exalted Subjects. Multiculturalism and Lumbarization.
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