Cultural Diversity: a reason to celebrate
In 2002 The United Nations declared May 21st to be the World
Day for Cultural Diversity. This year we commemorate the tenth anniversary of
that declaration. But what does it really mean to “celebrate diversity”?
In his book “The clash of intolerances”, the
Iranian philosopher Ramin Jahanbegloo suggests the idea of embracing Cultural
Diversity within a nation as a cause for celebration instead of conflict and
division. His thesis is sustained by historical cases such as the Spanish “Convivencia” ( 8th - 13th Century):
“…While Europe languished in the Dark Ages, Muslims, Jews and
Christians in Andalusia together formed an intricate social fabric having a
closely entwined and culturally fruitful collaboration. (…)The paradigm of
Cordoba shows not only the possibilities of a dialogical exchange, where people
of different religions and cultures could live side by side, discerning common
grounds and values without hating what—and who— they are not, but also the
strength of the diversity of European identity—a strength that could encourage
further border-crossings between Islamic and European civilizations in the
South and the North of the Mediterranean. The Andalusian experience symbolizes
the universality of the human cultures to connect with each other.”
The challenge of seeing cultural
diversity within nations as an asset, as a cause for celebration instead of
division suggests the idea of denying our own self-sufficiency and the intention
of recognizing our own incompleteness. This approach highlights the
construction of identities as a result of human interaction. In other words we
do not form our identities in spite of our
differences but because of them. I am thanks to my neighbor.
We’re empowered
to construct social meanings through our interaction with our social environment.
However, settling for what we already know (or think we know) without seeing
and hearing different worldviews, represents not only fear but also lack of
character. Stepping out of our comfort zone and accepting the challenge of
having our own arguments being refuted by another person’s opinion is in fact
putting our own beliefs to test. At the end of the day we may find ourselves in
two scenarios. A we may reaffirm our beliefs by hearing others or B we decide
our neighbor, who seemed so wrong at first, has actually proven to have a point
and a somewhat valid argument and all of a sudden my “absolute truth” seems not
so absolute anymore. In either case
it is a win-win situation.
Most of today’s societies are
multicultural societies. Try to find an homogenous country, mission impossible.
Ethnic (and religious) minorities are a reality in every Nation-State. Global waves of massive migration due to the conditions of unemployment,
poverty, and war, has emerged the debate regarding the increasing establishment
of porous borders and on the other hand the question of policy in multicultural
contexts. Such is the case of Europe, a continent that is still struggling with
this phenomenon. Unfortunately the hegemonic paradigm in Europe is that of assimilation,
that is, the idea that everyone must subject to a National Identity and that an
expression of your cultural and religious particularities in the public space
is not an option. Cultural assimilation leads to immigrants, for instance, hiding their true identities to try and blend with the crowd. A historical
paradox I dare say. Precisely because what we think of today’s Western
Civilization had its foundations in the Eastern ideas…what would it be of our
western scientific progress if the Arabs hadn’t passed into us Math? And what
about our the new discoveries in medicine…none of that would have been possible
without the transmission of medical knowledge by pioneers as Averroes and
Maimonides?
Voltaire claimed that the East is
the civilization "to which the West owes everything". I believe the
East and the West owe one another more than they can tell.
Exclusively because today’s
societies are plural, Intercultural Dialogue is an imperative condition. We can
only think of working out our differences once dialogue is an institutionalized
practice.
Jahanbegloo: Cosmopolitanism and Diversity: Thinking Democratic Peace