Past Events
- Embracing the Other? The philosophy of multiculturalism
- Venue: Institut Français, 17 Queensberry Place, London
- Date: June 9, 2012
- Time: 1:30am-2:30am
- Booking: Contact the Institut Français Box Office 020 7871 3515
As part of My Night with Philosophers, organised by the Institut Français du Royaume-Uni - a whole night of debates, films, music, conferences, performances and more, from 7pm on Friday 8 June to 7am Saturday 9 June - the Institute of Ideas will be hosting a special roundtable rumble Embracing the Other? The philosophy of multiculturalism.
Multiculturalism, despite strong criticism from some quarters, still commands considerable influence. It is based on a philosophy of respect for differences between cultures, a rejection of any hierarchy of so-called majority cultures over minority ones. It is often opposed to the idea of assimilation: the process of the outsider taking on the values of a certain culture, leaving their native identity and history behind.
Does multiculturalism transform what we mean by equality - everyone possessing the same rights – to a demand of different rights for different cultures? Does it make differences into something to be accepted, accommodated and managed rather than questioned or overcome? Does it make the other Other? Render impossible any movement from the different to the same? Does the call for respect outlaw judgement? Are there dangers in being indifferent to difference?
Come and join in the discussions through the night with over 50 philosophers from both sides of the Channel discussing every aspect of the human experience - from love to religion, from the environment to the life of the mind - this night is sure to get your synapses firing.
Chair
Claire Fox, director, Institute of Ideas
Speakers
- Professor Fabienne Brugère, philosopher, L’Université Michel de Montaigne-Bordeaux 3
- Jonathan Chaplin, author Multiculturalism: a Christian Retrieval
- Rania Hafez, teacher educator and academic; founder and director, Muslim Women in Education
- Angus Kennedy, head of external relations, Institute of Ideas
- Patrice Maniglier, philosopher, University of Essex