What Is Multiculturalism?

Multiculturalism is a system of beliefs and behaviors that recognizes and respects the presence of all diverse groups in an organization or society, acknowledges and values their socio-cultural differences, and encourages and enables their continued contribution within an inclusive cultural context which empowers all within the organization or society.

Let’s take it apart. There are the four pairs of action phrases that give substance to the definition: “beliefs and behaviors,” “recognizes and respects,” “acknowledges and values,” “encourages and enables,” and a fifth one, “empowers.” Multiculturalism is a “system,” a set of interrelated parts—in this case, beliefs and behaviors—which make up the whole of how humans experience today’s world. It includes what people believe about others, their basic paradigms, and how this impact, and are impacted by, behavior. The outcome of this framework of beliefs/behaviors are seven important actions.

The first is recognition of the rich diversity in a given society or organization. For the longest time racial/ethnic minorities, the physically disabled, and women have not been given the same recognition as others. The one-sided approach to history and education has been a testimony to that fact.

With recognition should also comes respect. Respect and recognition are not the same, since recognizing the existence of a group does not necessarily elicit respect for the group. In a slave economy, for example, the presence of slaves was recognized but their humanity was not respected. For example, in the United States of America, the presence of American Indians in the Western expansion of the continent was constantly recognized by whites, but their environmentally conscious cultures were never respected. The contribution of women has usually been relegated to a footnote status. Our nation has a long history of not respecting the rights of the powerless.

Multiculturalism also entails acknowledging the validity of the cultural expressions and contributions of the various groups. This is not to imply that all cultural contributions are of equal value and social worth, or that all should be tolerated. Some cultural practices are better than others for the overall betterment of society. These cultural expressions and contributions that differ from those of the dominant group in society are usually only acknowledged when there is an economic market for them, such as music for African American, native Indian dances for tourism or cuisine from India. When the business sector wants our money, the advertising industry pictures people of color in a positive light. But in most other cases the entertainment media simply caricatures minority stereotypes, such as women usually in supportive roles. Multiculturalism thus means valuing what people have to offer, and not rejecting or belittling it simply because it differs from what the majority, or those in power, regard as important and of value Multiculturalism will also encourage and enable the contribution of the various groups to society or an organization. Women and persons of color, for example, often experience discouragement because what they bring to the “table” for discussion is often regarded as of little value or worth. Not everything can be utilized, however, nor is of the same worth

Published by EdChange and the Multicultural Pavilion – http://www.EdChange.org/multicultural