Author: gizem aydın
Date of Publication: 18/08/2022
We live in a world that is constantly changing and transforming. If we need to describe the era we live in, the concept of globalization would be the answer. Globalization, which is widely used in all branches of social sciences, is a process of international integration and change. This change brings with it national problems such as identity and culture. We can say that the racist approach of the majority to the minority that emerges in mixed cultures is an example of the problems we mentioned.
What is multiculturalism ?
Culture is everything material and spiritual peculiar to a society. It is a way of life passed on to future generations. In our globalizing world, societies are enriching culturally with each passing day. With the effect of factors such as technology, transportation and communication, cultures are getting closer to each other. As a result, multiculturalism and globalization coexist. Besides being a problem in our world, we should not ignore the positive features of this multicultural structure.
Multiculturalism is both a response to the reality of cultural pluralism in modern democracies and a way of not promoting exclusion, discrimination and oppression against cultural groups in the past. While multiculturalism continues to respect differences, it stops the assimilation pressure of the dominant culture and demands the inclusion of the views and contributions of different members of society.
Positive aspects and critics of multiculturalism
The coexistence of different cultures can color and facilitate our lives. Multiculturalism teaches people about different cultures and gives them a different perspective. People recognize different values, beliefs and lifestyles. A person who has the experience of living in a multicultural society experiences being more cosmopolitan. Just like life, living in a multicultural society is not always easy because everything in life is not easy.
An individual living in a society may feel pressure due to his identity. They may not feel like they belong to an identity. may feel compelled to choose any identity. One of the biggest problems that can be seen in multicultural societies is racism. For example, although they have lived together for centuries, there are problems between blacks and whites. As a result of these individual and social pressures, we see terrorist incidents.
Multiculturalism and Globalization: Fostering Inclusion
As a result, we see that cultures will become closer every day. We humans have duties to do here. As can be seen, of course, the cosmopolitan society has positive and negative effects on people. The duty of people is to lead their lives in this diversity within the framework of respect and understanding with each other.