Andrew Hagen

The philosophy of multiculturalism is the aesthetic preference and moral demand for a diverse mix of cultures. (*)

Unfortunately, multiculturalism is hobbled horribly by its own internal contradictions. Multiculturalism embraces cultures as they are, and urges a cultural exchange of ideas, customs, and values. This does not take into account that in some cultures, exchanges with other cultures of ideas, customs, and values are disfavored or even prohibited. For example, in modern day militant Islamism, other cultures are shunned, deprecated, and sometimes attacked.

When dealing with inward-driven cultures like militant Islamism, multiculturalists must obey two paradoxical injunctions. First, the multiculturalist must show respect for that culture by attempting to learn about it and communicate with its members, interacting with it, influencing it, and being influenced by it. Second, the multiculturalist must show respect for the inward-driven culture’s injunction against interactions with members of other cultures. A multiculturalist is supposed to embrace a culture that wants nothing to do with him, except perhaps to kill him.

Therefore, when multiculturalists think about radical Islamism, for example, they are caught in an ideological trap. How can you respectfully interact with a culture that authentically disapproves of interaction? The only safe way for a multiculturalist to proceed is to focus on the non-threatening aspects of such a culture, and to avoid any consideration of its threatening aspects. Taken to an extreme, a multiculturalist would surrender where defense is possible.

Multiculturalism is an elite fantasy made possible only through societal opulence and security. Those who would hold to such an idea without a mantle of protection would quickly be forced to reconcile their views. To the extent that multiculturalism interferes with the self-defense of many innocent people, it is immoral.

It is plain that one of the worst aspects of paleoliberalism is its adherence to multiculturalism.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 17th, 2003 at 23:28 and is filed under Multiculturalism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.