What do you consider "multicultural" versus "monocultural" (with any associations/connotations in your view). (cost, rated)

[Trimac20]

Originally Posted by Cocoricoco

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Switzerland is not multicultural at all. The fact that some Swish speak Swiss German or Swiss French is notwithstanding. The same thing goes with Canada.

Multicultural does not involve the combination of different European cultures.

I don't know what McDonalds has to do with multiculturality. The Japanese culture absorbs other cultures since Perry, so anything could be part of the Japanese culture. They even dance Salsa and Flamenco.

The "multicultural" buzzword was coined thinking in a utopic amalgamation of the French society with MUSLIMS.

East Asians are not considered as part of the Multicultural buzzword because they assimilate rapidly in western societies in a functional manner. For example, Vietnamese, Cambodians and Moluccans were an integral part of Europe when the word was coined.

What a bizarre statement. It sure did/does here. Europe has many cultures...Maybe you're one of those people who thinks 'diversity' is about the colour of your skin.

Also your last sentence is just plain false.

[jtur88]

The Andean countries of Latin America are certainty multicultural. The people are mainly of Native American roots, retaining much of that culture, steeped in Conquistador Catholicism, with political institutions that are Napoleonic/Jeffersonian and economic principles that are in bed with American bankers.

Southeast Asia's mix of Buddhism with Keynesianism is fascinating, too.

[Cocoricoco]

They are Andean, not multicultural. They have created their own society during the last 500 years.
As any western country, mainstream culture is Judeochristian Western Culture that sincretized ancient cultures, just as any European country.
Judeochristian Western Culture was also imposed in a large part of Europe, and their ancient cultures were also sincretized or violently removed.

[Cocoricoco]

Originally Posted by Trimac20

What a bizarre statement. It sure did/does here. Europe has many cultures...Maybe you're one of those people who thinks 'diversity' is about the colour of your skin.

Also your last sentence is just plain false.

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Multicultural and multiculturality is used by European politicians to refer to areas inhabited by non-assimilated immigrants and their culture, Muslims, Romanian Gypsies, etc.

A Polish restaurant in Paris is not MULTICULTURAL, for example.

Americans use "diversity", it means the same if you remove all the PC b.s.

To make it clearer, an Australian restaurant is not "multicultural" even if the restaurant roasts kanguroos and koalas in an open pit in Berlin.

[ragnarkar]

One thing I'm very confused about:

Do you consider a region multicultural if it's very ethnically diverse (say Southern California)?

What about an ethnic group with many established "subcultures" (for the lack of a better word.) Example: Chinese. There's Northern Chinese, Southern Chinese "cultures" that are somewhat similar yet distinct in certain aspects (as well as Hong Kong and Taiwanese Chinese)..

[Cocoricoco]

According to the French concept, if those ethnicities are not a burden for the country and they do not live in socially unstable areas (subsidised projects) that are time bombs, then they are NOT "multicultural". Then, they are French.


France have been receiving and assimilating foreigners during a long time, there are Vietnamese, Cambodians, Chinese, Laotians, Armenians and a large etcetera that are fully French.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Cocoricoco

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Multicultural and multiculturality is used by European politicians to refer to areas inhabited by non-assimilated immigrants and their culture, Muslims, Romanian Gypsies, etc.

A Polish restaurant in Paris is not MULTICULTURAL, for example.

Americans use "diversity", it means the same if you remove all the PC b.s.

To make it clearer, an Australian restaurant is not "multicultural" even if the restaurant roasts kanguroos and koalas in an open pit in Berlin.

Good example of how the definition can vary from one country or continent to the other.

In Canada, "multicultural" is generally synonymous with immigrant cultures, and does not refer to "English Canadians", "French Canadians" or aboriginal Canadians, even if the established groups I just mentioned do represent "multiple cultures".

[Acajack]

Some may not agree but to me what is multicultural is stuff that does not have (yet) established roots in the country. It is fairly close to what you would describe as "immigrant" cultures.

Even though they do represent the multiplicity of cultures, places like Punjab in India, Swiss French, Quebec, Flanders, etc. are not multicultural phenomena, but are rather examples of multinational states with established national cultures within them. (Regardless of whether their political status reflects this.)

[Trimac20]

Originally Posted by Cocoricoco

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Multicultural and multiculturality is used by European politicians to refer to areas inhabited by non-assimilated immigrants and their culture, Muslims, Romanian Gypsies, etc.

A Polish restaurant in Paris is not MULTICULTURAL, for example.

Americans use "diversity", it means the same if you remove all the PC b.s.

To make it clearer, an Australian restaurant is not "multicultural" even if the restaurant roasts kanguroos and koalas in an open pit in Berlin.

Then their definition of the word is deceptive.

[tvdxer]

This is a rather ambiguous term, but in the sense I usually use it, it refers to several not-yet-fully-assimilated immigrant groups living side-by-side. They may be hostile towards each other or friendly, as in a college town where 25% of the students are international students.

New York is multicultural.
London is multicultural.
Dubai is multicultural.
Minneapolis is less multicultural.
Duluth is not multicultural.