The opposition between ‘Britishness’ and multiculturalism is more complex than it seems (original) (raw)
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British national identity and the dilemmas of multiculturalism
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Nationalism and multiculturalism are often perceived as polar opposites with the former viewed as the disease and the latter the cure. Contrary to this view, this article argues that a strong national identity, albeit of a particular kind, is prerequisite to a stable and functioning multicultural society. The article seeks to identify both the causes and the implications of the absence of an overarching, civic national identity in Britain, further to the goal of seeking a meaningful solution. It is our contention that the problem lies in the difficulty involved in reconciling current pressures on British identity with a coherent narrative of British history, especially its imperial past.
Ethnicities, 2017
If the 1997 New Labour's winning election seems to correlate with an upsurge in both the political arena and in public favour for multiculturalism in the UK, the overall decade and a half that ensued took the very opposite path. For example, Prime Minister David Cameron declared in 2011 that state multiculturalism was a failure. In this article, I question the impact of such declarations onto the UK's immigrant multicultural policy. In particular, using and updating the Multicultural Policy Index, I show evidence of the evolution, between 2000 and 2015, of the UK's multicultural policy. In turn, this provides a satisfactory framework for having a clear understanding of the public policy dynamic in matters of multiculturalism in the following of David Cameron's declarations concerning the failure of state multiculturalism. Then, echoing Meer and Modood's argument of a 'civic-thickening' for the UK's integration policy, I discuss citizenship education programs of the four constituent nations of the UK-where such integration policies have been implemented. This shows that while such curriculums all put forward approaches for 'thickening' togetherness, it is nonetheless consistent with a 'multiculturalist advance'. Hence, one must invalidate the thesis following which multicultural policy and integration policy should be understood through the strict prism of a zero-sum game.
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As multiculturalism in the United Kingdom passes to a ‘post’ phase of existence, at least in academic and political discourse, it is important to consider the lingering impact of over fifty years of its presence in the form of Race Relations and integration measures. This article aims at a critical reassessment of the overarching strategies that have developed over the last half-century in relation to the integration of immigrants by putting the legacy of British multiculturalism into a firm historical and socio-political context; by marrying immigration and integration policies with normative models of integration in the hope of drawing a certain causality between them; and finally by highlighting the changes that have taken shape amidst the continuity of certain shared principles or frames of reference.
THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE: AN OVERVIEW AND ANALYSIS OF BRITISH MULTICULTURALISM KAROLINA CZERSKA-SHAW
As multiculturalism in the United Kingdom passes to a 'post' phase of existence, at least in academic and political discourse, it is important to consider the lingering impact of over fifty years of its presence in the form of Race Relations and integration measures. This article aims at a critical reassessment of the overarching strategies that have developed over the last half-century in relation to the integration of immigrants by putting the legacy of British multiculturalism into a firm historical and socio-political context; by marrying immigration and integration policies with normative models of integration in the hope of drawing a certain causality between them; and finally by highlighting the changes that have taken shape amidst the continuity of certain shared principles or frames of reference. The first part of the article looks at immigration and integration policies in Britain through a historical perspective; the second section delves into the concept of integration itself and its complex manifestations in British politics and policies; finally, a critical review of the development of these policies and their 21 st century manifestations and outcomes are discussed in the third section. The analysis shows that the United Kingdom has, over the last decade, seen an ever-stronger intertwining of immigration and integration policies towards a robust civic integration approach, made evident in the introduction of citizenship and language testing schemes and strict preconditions on entry. Meanwhile, the turn in anti-discrimination legislation has been rather subtler. It has extended its reach to other areas of inequality, focusing on more pressing, or less contentious minority group support, such as women and LGBT rights, whilst retaining a measure of ethnic and national minority protection.
Changing Perceptions of Multiculturalism in the British Public Sphere
2017
This paper is devoted to the examination of the evolution of the uses of the term multiculturalism in a corpus of selected speeches by prominent British politicians, officials and diplomats in the United Kingdom within the decade 2001–2011. Britain is considered to be one of Europe’s most multicultural countries and there was a time when its government took pride in its pro-integration policies. That is why within the elite discourses of the Labour governments of the late 1990s, multiculturalism had overwhelmingly positive connotations: it was associated with new opportunities, strength, enrichment, social progress and economic success. However, over the course of the 2000s there was much debate over the alleged failure of multiculturalism as a state policy, as a project for social cohesion and as a human value in itself. There have been calls for restrictions of immigration and asylum, increased demands on immigrants to assimilate and a focus on shared British national identity. In...
Multiculturalism in contemporary Britain: policy, law and theory
Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy
We start by surveying the different issues that fall under the umbrella of 'multiculturalism'. We then sketch the trajectory of British multiculturalism since 1945, and examine its broader legal and philosophical contexts. This narrative highlights the empirical and theoretical connections between multiculturalism and decolonisation, and that the conceptualisation of multiculturalism in political theory is more wide-ranging than in law or policy. This helps foreground neglected aspects of British multiculturalism in policy and law, and suggests we should widen the philosophical scope of multiculturalism even further. We then summarise the papers and draw out the connections between them. We argue that a deeper understanding of contemporary British multiculturalism inexorably leads us back to fundamental philosophical and practical questions regarding the structure and purpose of the British polity, and conclude that this indicates the need for greater polycentricity in governance.
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The idea of multiculturalism has been hotly debated across the UK in recent years. This article addresses the question of whether multiculturalism has failed in Great Britain based on an assessment of both sides of the debate. Considerable arguments against multiculturalism have been submitted by both academics and political figures, stating its devastating impact on social cohesion, causing social segregation, and its incompatibility with the principles of liberal democracy. This essay argues the opposite: the primary argument in this essay is that what has failed is not multiculturalism itself, but rather the understanding of it, due to the powerful negative discourse around the term embedded in multicultural policies (MCPs). The article argues that there is an urgent need for the contextual development of multiculturalism, which can lead to a variety of views. It concludes that the arguments against multiculturalism lack empirical evidence, and those arguments have been strongly influenced by the negative discourse around the idea of multiculturalism, rather than its everyday realities.
British Multiculturalism and the Politics of Representation
British Multiculturalism and the Politics of Representation, 2017
What is the connection between inclusion, exclusion and identity? This book argues that the politics of inclusion and identity should be studied as struggles over the representations of the identities involved. The book engages with a range of debates and themes including Britishness, race, the nature and role of Islam in British society, homelessness and social justice, and it adopts a post-structuralist approach to the theoretical and practical issues surrounding inclusion, exclusion and identity. The argument is developed through careful analyses of cases from the last four decades of British multiculturalism. Each chapter deals with a concept and practice of inclusion: equality, recognition, tolerance and hospitality. Each chapter also deals with one or more cases: Gordon Brown’s and David Cameron’s different versions of Britishness, the legal case Mandla; the debate between Bhikhu Parekh and Brian Barry; newspaper coverage and debates about Begum, X v Y, Playfoot and Watkins-Si...
Inclusive Britishness: A Multiculturalist Advancep ost_979 23..41
Scholars argue that policies of multiculturalism in different countries are in retreat or in question. Britain is often used as an example of this, and leading British politicians and commentators often criticise such a policy. Yet a long-held multiculturalist goal has been to make Britishness more inclusive and this is something leading politicians were until recently uncommitted to. We use interviews with politicians who have served in this government and the last, the measures they have introduced, their media contributions, speeches and policy documents, to show that they are now committed to this goal. At a time when a British policy of multiculturalism is said to be in retreat or in question we identify a multiculturalist advance and show that this raises a range of difficult questions about government approaches to 'Britishness'.
Inclusive Britishness: A Multiculturalist Advance
Political Studies, 2012
Scholars argue that policies of multiculturalism in different countries are in retreat or in question. Britain is often used as an example of this, and leading British politicians and commentators often criticise such a policy. Yet a long-held multiculturalist goal has been to make Britishness more inclusive and this is something leading politicians were until recently uncommitted to. We use interviews with politicians who have served in this government and the last, the measures they have introduced, their media contributions, speeches and policy documents, to show that they are now committed to this goal. At a time when a British policy of multiculturalism is said to be in retreat or in question we identify a multiculturalist advance and show that this raises a range of difficult questions about government approaches to ‘Britishness’.