Symbiotic Co-Existence
- Submitted by: Stryhn
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- Date Submitted: 11/14/2010 10:38 PM
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Symbiotic co-existence
- single or plural identity?
Sociologists define multiculturalism as a state or condition of being influenced by several cultures, while politicians and diplomats define it as a state of maintaining a diversity of ethnic cultures within a community or society. At the same time as the dictionary defines national identity as; “A nation is a group of people who share culture, ethnicity and language, often possessing or seeking its own independent government.” And that’s why so many countries find it hard to successfully integrate immigrants, because the term national identity and nation contradict the idea of a multicultural society. So the question remains; is it possible for several cultures to form a nation in symbiotic co-existence? Britain has benefited historically from its colonisation and the expansion of the British Empire, which, at the time as well as to today, have brought many new cultural impressions to the country and made Britain the multicultural society it is today. But the question is; has the British culture annexed the incoming cultures into a melting pot or has Britain escaped its nationalistic monoculture with a society built on the salad bowl or mosaic metaphor?
Today London alone consists of more than 42 ethnic minority groups of over 10,000 people with recent foreign antecedents. Nationwide Britain has nearly a million immigrants, who have defined themselves as of mixed race according to a survey made by the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE). The CRE is a non-governmental organisation or NGO founded in UK during the Race Relations Act in 1976, which promotes racial equality and tolerance. Since the CRE was first created, Britain’s demographic outlook has changed rapidly compared to the society thirty years ago. This is due to globalisation and the impose of the treaty of Rome, which meant that capital, articles and labour become increasingly mobile, leading to huge demographic shifts. The term...
- single or plural identity?
Sociologists define multiculturalism as a state or condition of being influenced by several cultures, while politicians and diplomats define it as a state of maintaining a diversity of ethnic cultures within a community or society. At the same time as the dictionary defines national identity as; “A nation is a group of people who share culture, ethnicity and language, often possessing or seeking its own independent government.” And that’s why so many countries find it hard to successfully integrate immigrants, because the term national identity and nation contradict the idea of a multicultural society. So the question remains; is it possible for several cultures to form a nation in symbiotic co-existence? Britain has benefited historically from its colonisation and the expansion of the British Empire, which, at the time as well as to today, have brought many new cultural impressions to the country and made Britain the multicultural society it is today. But the question is; has the British culture annexed the incoming cultures into a melting pot or has Britain escaped its nationalistic monoculture with a society built on the salad bowl or mosaic metaphor?
Today London alone consists of more than 42 ethnic minority groups of over 10,000 people with recent foreign antecedents. Nationwide Britain has nearly a million immigrants, who have defined themselves as of mixed race according to a survey made by the Commission for Racial Equality (CRE). The CRE is a non-governmental organisation or NGO founded in UK during the Race Relations Act in 1976, which promotes racial equality and tolerance. Since the CRE was first created, Britain’s demographic outlook has changed rapidly compared to the society thirty years ago. This is due to globalisation and the impose of the treaty of Rome, which meant that capital, articles and labour become increasingly mobile, leading to huge demographic shifts. The term...