tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1182748999141179188.post6750110049430462804..comments2023-11-05T13:59:28.534+02:00Comments on Journaling in Jerusalem: Some Thoughts on MulticulturalismDanielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11599244516390650642noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1182748999141179188.post-32672462796188280282009-02-09T18:10:00.000+02:002009-02-09T18:10:00.000+02:00you'd be surprised what some people do in the name...you'd be surprised what some people do in the name of multiculturalism - for instance, paying lip service to the idea that everyone is equal and valuing other cultures but saying that despite difference, we must have a common curriculum in order to insure national unity. That is to say, it's OK be your culture in your home, but when you are at school, you have to learn "American" culture so that American society can remain a cohesive whole. This is what at least one of the theorists we read referred to as "conservative multiculturalism" or "corporate multiculturalism" - the second name also addresses his concern that this form of multiculturalism allows corporations to use their presumed respect for others to draw upon stereotyped images of others to sell products: ie, claiming that because they respect a certain group they will include them in a commercial, but really making use of negative stereotypes and reinforcing them in order to sell the product, and then patting themselves on the back for having included "minorities" in their advertising at all. I'm not sure I would call either of these strategies multicultural, but because some of the people who employ them refer to themselves as multicultural because it is no longer socially acceptable not to be multicultural, I suppose a definition of multiculturalism might have to include these strategies. I don't know - you're right, it's a stretch to include what I agree is anti-multicultural within a definition of multiculturalism.Jessicahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15348915755090768640noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1182748999141179188.post-59920771930860344722009-02-07T06:42:00.000+02:002009-02-07T06:42:00.000+02:00Wow, what a disturbing interaction. Your class sou...Wow, what a disturbing interaction. <BR/><BR/>Your class sounds interesting. There were two definitions that struck me. <BR/>Language--I don't think I realized how much language shapes how we interpret the world until I moved to Hanoi. The language--the structure, what words are available, what is considered polite etc--and the culture are so intertwined. I have a whole new appreciation of why new immigrants want to pass their "home" language down to their kids. I'm glad you are trying to save Yiddish. <BR/><BR/>Multiculturalism--you define multiculturalism to include “constructing the notion of a common culture and delegitimizing otherness.” I had always thought of that approach as “anti-multiculturalism.”Nanette Goodmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01950409620241939889noreply@blogger.com