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Essay / An argument for multiculturalism as an inevitable challenge for democracies
In a world where the boundaries between cultures and countries are becoming increasingly blurred due to phenomena like globalization and mass immigration, we begins to wonder whether multiculturalism is becoming an obstacle in modern democracies. Multiculturalism leads to the existence of different and sometimes opposing values and interests among people living under the same nation, which leads to the possibility of political unrest. It is because of this assumption that some insist that democracies work best in culturally homogenous societies. While this certainly poses some challenges to the democratic process, it does not completely undermine democracy. This essay will demonstrate that multiculturalism constitutes an inevitable challenge to which democracies can adapt and overcome. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Contemporary democracies are meant to reflect the desire of the people, so ideally every individual would have the same desires based on their culture. Multiculturalism refers to either “the presence and recognition or enjoyable celebration of ethnocultural diversity” (Kymlicka). Different cultures have different values and so the question arises whether or not democracies still reflect values when people no longer share a single culture and are instead divided by diversity. In a postmodernist world, cultural diversity is just as inevitable as immigration. The question therefore becomes “is multiculturalism a challenge to democracy?” » It depends on your vision of what a nation is. According to an article published by Allison Jagger, a nation can be interpreted as either an ethnicity or a demos. Multiculturalism is more likely to be seen as a threat to individuals who believe that a nation is bound by a common culture, history, and identity than to those who believe that a nation is bound by those who "constitute themselves voluntarily as a State by giving itself democratic power. constitution” (Jaggar). Some, like the French political philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau, will argue for cultural homogeneity in a nation because the values, interests, and goals of the people will be the same. Therefore, the government chosen by the people will be the same. reflect the general will. In Rousseau's social contract theory, he believes that for people to maintain their freedom in political society, "[they], since they are subject to laws, must be their authors" (Rousseau 83). . Rousseau believes that people lose their freedom when they become dependent on a singular and particular will. He therefore insists on the idea that government is only legitimate if the laws reflect the will of a people as a whole or rather the general will. Some of the preconditions he sets for the general will are that the people who share power within a political community must have common interests. In order to maintain this prerequisite, he also insists that society must also maintain cultural homogeneity at a certain level in order to have the same values, as this will lead to fundamental unity among people (Rousseau 88). In a multicultural society, common interests are difficult to establish because different cultures defend different values. Just as laws are made by the general will, the object of these laws must also be general; this means that there can be no special treatment between,.