Example Of Biography On Multiculturalism

Kymlicka suggests that one develops self-respect from one’s culture. The culture of the minority groups are threatened by extinction despite the important role that they play in providing “members with meaningful ways across the full range of human activities, including social, educational, religious, recreational, and economic life, encompassing both public and private life,” (Susan Moller Okin p.11). In this case, Kymlicka argues that the rights and privileges are entrenched in the culture.
The history and the language play a critical role in liberation of an individual. If the minorities are not protected from the majority, their culture would end up extinct. Assimilations seek to have the minorities drop their culture and adopt the culture of the majority. If this happens, the culture of the minorities dies out making the individual lack the grounds on which to base their live and choices. Assimilation is in this case, undermines the self-respect of the minorities and hence, the minority group needs to be protected so that their culture, way of live both in private and public is preserved. To do so, it is keeping the minority groups at equal levels with the majority.
On the other hand, Okin opposes the idea of Kymlicka claiming that in as much as the majority may respect the minority groups; such does not guarantee liberation of the women. From this view, Okin asserts that cultures have a historical oppressive system on the part of women. In fact, he claims that within the cultural setting, it is where actual oppression takes place. He further claims that a group that requires special rights must first be holding recognizable liberties free from discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender, race, sex, etc.
Any group without these liberties cannot offer a rich ground upon which one can make choices that are liberal. Although Kymlicka claims that if any group that does not hold the recognizable liberate ought not be given the same, Okin notes that such discrimination acts are not in the public but practiced in the private lives as men dominate on women, limiting there choice overtly.
Okin claims that that although minority rights groups may be perceived to be part of the bigger solution, they also present a problem. Women having been oppressed in the same minority groups even with the rights, it is possible that the lives of the women would be far much better if such cultures became extinct or forced to adhere to what the majority culture do in so far as women rights is concerned. There is no way the elderly and the leaders of the minority can realize the discrimination unless they co-opt the young women since the elderly women usually are brainwashed to reinforce gender inequality.
Multiculturalism-a proper way of responding to religious and cultural divert (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2010); does not guarantee the fundamental rights of an individual especially women. The main focus on the rights of the minority group in blanket form overlooks the basic principles that can lead to a truly liberated society. The fundamental problems may not in most cases be what a certain minority group portrays in public. In the private spheres, there is discrimination even when the minority groups have been awarded all the freedom and liberties they seek. Okin argues that a culture that intentionally does not have uphold the liberties it seeks ought not to be granted the same as to do is pretense.

References

Susan Moller Okin (1999). Is Multiculturalism Bad for women? Retrieved on February 25, 2015 from https://www.amherst.edu/media/view/88038/original/susan+moller+okin.pdf
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy(2010). Multiculturalism. Web. Retrieved on February 25, 2015 from <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/multiculturalism/>