Watch in modern Europe. Is this a sign of a failing policy of multiculturalism in Europe?
Leave your response below 14 November, 23.59
Has multiculturalism failed?
I cannot say that multiculturalism failed completely, however it is not successful either. This kind of Neo Fascist groups like CasaPound in Italy shows the position of locals against immigrants for example. According to them to be citizen of Italy you should have legacy or care and contribute to the country. In my opinion immigrants do contribute to the country. One of the signs of failing policy of multiculturalism are tensions over cultural and religious practices, especially with the influx of immigrants from different cultural backgrounds. Issues such as the wearing of religious attire, the building of mosques, and cultural practices have sparked debates on national identity. Furthermore, the another signs are the protests in different European countries and economic disparities among different cultural or ethnic groups. Certain immigrant communities face discrimination in employment and economic opportunities, which lead to social and economic inequality.
You said immigrants contribute to the countries in EU. in what ways? don't locals value this contribution?
In my opinion, the discussion on multiculturalism has become somewhat distorted nowadays. In the history of mankind, people of different kind who are moving over vast territories has been the normal. This does not mean that migrations have always been peaceful as in-groups and out-groups have always existed. However, I think it is only with the creation of nation states that differences of origin have been articulated as much as it is now.
Fascism is in its nature a political movement that thinks the in-group is superior to other groups. With the existence of nation states it is very easy for fascist movements to draw the line along ethnic lines. The morally and culturally superior people is the ethnic majority of that state – the foreigner becomes the scapegoat. I do not think this has to do with the mixing of ‘races’ in the first place, but it is more about the logic of fascism.
Poland is a prime example of this. Before the second World War, Poles, Germans, Jews, Ukrainians, Lithuanians, and other people lived together on the territory on Poland. But after the war the country became one of the most homogenous countries in Europe because of the Holocaust and the following mass expulsion of people after the end of the war. But as we see today, this is not an antidote to fascist policies. Because there are no non-European immigrants to put the blame on in Poland, the far-right government has found new culprits to the in-group. In this case, the LGBTQ-community was targeted as LGBT-free zones were introduced and LGBTQ was described as an ideology, not real people.
Another example is Italian Jews who initially voted for and were members of Mussolini’s fascist party since they were not targeting Jews, but blaming other out-groups at first. But eventually, the Jews would be targeted as well and banned from the party (more to be read here --> https://www.quest-cdecjournal.it/italys-fascist-jews-insights-on-an-unusual-scenario/).
As we can see, the problem with fascism is not multiculturalism, different religions, different sexual orientation or whoever the scapegoat is. The problem is the fascist ideology itself. The most important thing is to protect the weak groups in society - the poor, the sick - who groups like CasaPound target to get support among the general public.
Fascism is in its nature a political movement that thinks the in-group is superior to other groups. With the existence of nation states it is very easy for fascist movements to draw the line along ethnic lines. The morally and culturally superior people is the ethnic majority of that state – the foreigner becomes the scapegoat. I do not think this has to do with the mixing of ‘races’ in the first place, but it is more about the logic of fascism.
Poland is a prime example of this. Before the second World War, Poles, Germans, Jews, Ukrainians, Lithuanians, and other people lived together on the territory on Poland. But after the war the country became one of the most homogenous countries in Europe because of the Holocaust and the following mass expulsion of people after the end of the war. But as we see today, this is not an antidote to fascist policies. Because there are no non-European immigrants to put the blame on in Poland, the far-right government has found new culprits to the in-group. In this case, the LGBTQ-community was targeted as LGBT-free zones were introduced and LGBTQ was described as an ideology, not real people.
Another example is Italian Jews who initially voted for and were members of Mussolini’s fascist party since they were not targeting Jews, but blaming other out-groups at first. But eventually, the Jews would be targeted as well and banned from the party (more to be read here --> https://www.quest-cdecjournal.it/italys-fascist-jews-insights-on-an-unusual-scenario/).
As we can see, the problem with fascism is not multiculturalism, different religions, different sexual orientation or whoever the scapegoat is. The problem is the fascist ideology itself. The most important thing is to protect the weak groups in society - the poor, the sick - who groups like CasaPound target to get support among the general public.
CasaPound is an example of a strong ideology that has survived through the years to the modern days. Apparently, fascism has a great legacy which affects Italians’ vision of the uniqueness of their nation, that creates a lot of challenges in the country itself. Multiculturalism is certainly failed in some neighbourhoods in Italy where fascism re-emerged. However, we cannot state that multiculturalism is failed globally. In the capitalist cosmopolitan globalized world, the space for multiculturalism is open and has a good trend for a future peaceful coexistence. The reasons for that are the great advantages that it brings, like innovation and creativity, business development and economic growth, economic internationalisation and the open-mindedness for the other cultures. As far as these factors are needed and relevant for the Europe, which is getting more economically, culturally and politically integrated , multiculturalism will have an important role.