Theories of multiculturalism
Multiculturalism is the way in which a society deals with cultural diversity, both at the national and at the community level. Sociologically, multiculturalism assumes that society as a whole benefit from increased diversity though the harmonious coexistence of different cultures. Based on the underlying assumption that members of often very different cultures can coexist peacefully.
Multiculturalism is one of the most controversial ideas in contemporary politics. The two primary theories or models of multiculturalism as the manner in which different cultures are integrated into a single society are best defined by the metaphors commonly used to describe them—the “melting pot” and the “salad bowl” theories.
The Melting Pot Theory
Most of us are familiar with the metaphor for America as a “melting pot.” People from countries all over the world come together here to form one nation where we are all Americans. Our diverse backgrounds, cultures, and religions melt away as we form a homogeneous American stew.
The melting pot theory of multiculturalism assumes that, that groups will tend to “melt together,” abandoning their individual cultures and becoming fully assimilated into the predominant society. Typically used to describe the assimilation of immigrants into the United States, the melting pot theory is often illustrated by the metaphor of a foundry’s smelting pots in which the elements iron and carbon are melted together to create a single, stronger metal—steel.
America is now to be considered a “tossed salad.” This means our racial, religious, and cultural heritage remain intact. We identify with our groups outside of being just plain American. We are Mexican-American, African-America, Muslim-American, Italian-American, Asian-American, and the list goes on.
The melting pot model has been criticized for reducing diversity, causing people to lose their traditions. For example, the U.S. Indian Reorganization Act of 1934 forced the assimilation of nearly 350,000 Indigenous peoples into American society without any regard for the diversity of their heritages and lifestyles.
The Salad Bowl Theory
The USA is traditionally called a melting pot because with time, generations of immigrants have melted together. But in the UK, where cultural diversity is considered a positive thing, immigrants have always been encouraged to maintain their traditions and their native language. This model of racial integration can be described as a salad bowl, with people of different cultures living in harmony, like the lettuce, tomatoes and carrots in a salad.
The salad bowl theory it is not necessary to give up their cultural heritage in order to be considered members of the dominant society. For example, African Americans do not need to stop observing Kwanzaa rather than Christmas in order to be considered “Americans.”
Robert Putnam showing that people living in salad bowl multicultural communities were less likely to vote or volunteer for community improvement projects.
Why Diversity Is Important
Multiculturalism is the key to achieving a high degree of cultural diversity. Diversity occurs when people of different races, nationalities, religions, ethnicities, and philosophies come together to form a community.
Diversity enhances creativity. It encourages the search for novel information and perspectives, leading to better decision making and problem solving. Diversity can improve the bottom line of companies and lead to unfettered discoveries and breakthrough innovations.
Communities and organizations in all settings benefit from the different backgrounds, skills, experiences, and new ways of thinking that come with cultural diversity.
Both models of multicultural societies have contradictory aspects:
- in a melting pot there is no cultural diversity and sometimes differences are not respected.
- in a salad bowl cultures do not mix at all.
The ideal situation would be a society where all citizens have equal rights and opportunities, but can also maintain their own individuality. It is not easy to put this ideal into practice, but multiracial society is now a reality and we must learn to live together in the best possible way.
Reference
- St. John de Crevecoeur, J. Hector (1782). Avalon Project - Letters From an American Farmer : Letter III - What Is An American (yale.edu) The Avalon Project. Yale University.
- De La Torre, Miguel A. The Problem with the Melting Pot - Good Faith Media EthicsDaily.com (2009).
- Hauptman, Laurence M. “Going Off the Reservation”: A Memoir | The Public Historian | University of California Press (ucpress.edu) University of California Press.
- Jonas, Michael. The downside of diversity - The Boston Globe The Boston Globe (August 5, 2007).
