November 11, 2005
ENTRY FORBIDDEN
What does 'assimilation' mean? (Jason Lim, International Herald Tribune, November 10th, 2005)
The United States is often held up as the model "melting pot," with countless ethnicities living in harmony side by side, interacting peacefully every day. The stereotype is true to a certain extent. However, when you look beneath the surface, you will see that most minorities have built separate ethnic enclaves that are reproductions of their respective homelands, often catering exclusively to their own groups and beholden to their traditional prejudices and cultural chauvinism.Just because we are interacting economically with other ethnic groups does not mean that America is just one big family living in perfect harmony. Superficial tolerance and interactions among different groups do not translate into sociocultural integration. In fact, the opposite may be true. Familiarity breeds contempt, and that contempt has the scary potential to ignite more destruction than that currently wrought by the French youths, turning this happy melting pot into one boiling with blood.
So, how do we keep everything together in America despite these underlying dynamics? Why do the Chinese, Koreans, Dominicans, Mexicans, Irish, Italians, blacks, and countless other ethnic minorities overcome their respective cultural prejudices and constitute constructive parts of a cohesive society?
Simple. Despite our cultural differences, we all buy into the noble principle enshrined in the following immortal words: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." This is the glue that binds us all together. This is the overriding common belief that allows us to overcome our significant cultural differences and call ourselves Americans.
This is successful assimilation. Successful assimilation means that you share that one greater, overriding belief that overcomes the inevitable friction that comes from looking and thinking differently from one another. Therefore, successful assimilation requires a central core belief that can unite people in spite of their ingrained cultural differences. Without such a center, what are you being assimilated into?
Dry cleaning strangers' dirty laundry is not an uplifting work. Replacing broken zippers is not a glamorous profession. But my parents are satisfied because they bought into the core beliefs that them allowed the opportunity to self-determine their lives within their means.
Therefore, the London bombings and Paris riots do not represent any general failure in secular European society. In fact, if at all, these events represent a failure to teach these misguided children the basic nobility of the liberal societies they were born into. Because people were so sensitive to their right to maintain their own cultural and traditional identity, perhaps they were never given a chance to truly become Europeans.
And although introspection is needed after such tragedies, we should not search our collective soul just to seek out apologetic excuses for imaginary failures. Let us delve into our soul to rediscover and reaffirm the shared liberal spirit that underlies the great democracies of the world.
A noble sentiment, eloquently expressed, but Mr. Lim fails to understand the terrible dilemma facing modern Europe. It is pretty much divided between those who have completely rejected their culture and heritage in favour of a self-indulgent nihilism and those whose conception of traditional European values leaves no room for outsiders.
Mr Lim overlooks the fact that the London bombings and the French riots are of a different order.
The root causes of the French riots seem to be fundamentally economic ones. For that, of course, the hopelessly misguided French economic model must take the lion’s share of the blame, although I don’t entirely go along with this tendency to condemn the French authorities to such an extent that we end up excusing the mob. A certain proportion of this is just down to the madness of crowds – and the typically French love of a damn good riot.
The London bombings by contrast, were a fundamentally fundamentalist problem. Al-qaeda take the lion’s share of the blame. The failure of our authorities was to spend far too long viewing radical Muslim clerics as if they were harmless English eccentrics ranting away in Hyde Park’s Speakers Corner.
Setting aside the economic failure of the french socialistic model as Brit mentions above, do the riots indict the concept of multiculturalism or point to its necessity?
French conservatives want to preserve french culture thereby seemingly creating secondary non-assimilated cultures.
Do french leftists consider this multiculturalism or just a failure to truly be multicultural. Any comments appreciated.
Perry:
That is an extremely good question.
If we argue that culture and heritage should be preserved, then given that forcing immigrants to abandon their own cultures is unrealistic, aren't we implying that multiculturalism is a necessity?
Multiculturalism is actually quite difficult to point to, anyway. The Notting Hill Carnival is as firmly established in Britain's cultural calendar as the Last Night of the Proms, and is attended by far more whites than can fit into the Royal Albert Hall.
Is that a great example of the success of multiculturalism, or of integration? Is it the case that the big multicultural party is open to everyone, but one small group of Muslims just doesn't want to attend?
In the end, I think the economics must the key. If the young men in the Parisian suburbs had jobs, they wouldn't be rioting whatever their cultural heritage.
Posted by: Brit at November 11, 2005 6:38 AMPerry:
I imagine the French will do what the French always do--call in the philosophers and drown in abstracts while life swirls around them. I also think the word multiculturalism should be retired for a time for the reasons Brit alludes to. Same with integration and assimilation. They have all come to mean too many different things.
Multiculturalism tends to be a bad word in the States where it is seen by many as a direct assault on the melting pot and associated with things like Spanish public education and intentional political/cultural separation. Canada and Australia have been promoting it loudly and conspicuously for decades, but (so far) it mainly means "Welcome. We aren't racially or culturally defined here". There is no third language public education or separate public institutions based upon different cultures (except French, of course). I don't think anybody in any country objects to cultural celebrations or keeping the old language alive at home or even ethnically-based housing (by choice) in the first generation.
In the end, it comes down to a practical on-the-street trade-off. Our wholehearted acceptance of them as co-citizens in exchange for their loyalty and self-reliance.
Posted by: Peter B at November 11, 2005 6:57 AMPeter has it essentially correct.
"Multi-culturalism" (I hate the word) works in the US because Americans really don't much care about culture of any kind, so long as people aren't too annoying about it.
Go along to get along.
If the French actually lived up to their liberte etc, they wouldn't be having this problem now.
Posted by: Jeff Guinn at November 11, 2005 7:31 AMWith, of course, the unifying ideal mentioned in the article.
Posted by: Peter B at November 11, 2005 8:39 AMLim should define what he means by "one happy family."
My definition of one happy family isn’t a family in perfect harmony living in a utopian paradise that doesn’t and can’t exist. It’s a bunch of individual people who get along with each other, know and tolerate each others foibles, have arguments and even drag out fights, have wildly different life styles, have different opinions on a host of things from tattoos to Tolstoy, but who always remain united as a family. Who will always support each other and go to each others aid.
In other words, we’re an American family and that’s what we’re all about.
Posted by: tefta at November 11, 2005 12:06 PM