Multiculturalism: Still Controversial, Apparently

A new memoir by former Presidential candidate and Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney includes this zinger:

The multiculturalism movement must be unmasked for the fraud it is. There are superior cultures, and ours is one of them.

Part of me wants to go oh, sigh, but another part figures if a man who actually got a decent number of votes in the Presidential Primaries wants to stake his claim on bashing multiculturalism, it’s worth a short reply.

Unlike European nations, America was never all-white, never monocultural. (European cultures are actually historically quite mixed among themselves… the Irish ending up in Spain and the Romans in Ireland, etc….but until recently less historically multi-racial.) So, it’s impossible to talk about America without talking about a multi-cultural America. You can ignore it. You can ignore the fact that the decision to institutionalize slavery provoked a Constitutional crisis, a war, and a slew of amendments. You can ignore the history of warfare against Native American tribes; the Chinese Exclusion Act; Bracero programs; and internment camps for Japanese Americans.

To the extent that we have clarified some of our positions on human rights in this country, it is often as a result of the crucible of multiculturalism. We are better off for having struggled… struggled with our own identity. It’s a Census year. We’ll get new numbers soon, but the current Census figures show a nation that is a third Latino and non-white; two-thirds non-Hispanic white. By the year 2042, according to the Census, America will have no racial/ethnic majority.

So, you can invent the past… a past where only white people did things, and where our Constitution did not have to evolve in order to embrace the humanity of all Americans. You can invent a future where multiculturalism is an enemy. But then, you’d be living in a world of your own invention… a lonely, colorless place indeed.

Tags: , ,

  • Marissapoulter

    I don’t know if you still check this blog but you have misunderstood this quote. I believe Mr. Romney was speaking of cultures as a whole. The American Culture as a whole. When he speaks of a superior culture, he is speaking of the American culture as a whole, where we are privileged with a freedom of religion (that’s why our ancestors came here), freedom of speech, equality, and respect for one another. This is a divine country and we are a beacon to the world. As Abraham Lincoln spoke, “I have always thought that all men should be free; but if any should be slaves, it should be first those who desire it for themselves, and secondly, those who desire it for others. When I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally.” Romney also wrote in his book, “We must argue our case, leading others to eagerly join us in the case of liberty and peace.” Anyway, he was speaking positively about our country and the example we should be to the world and he noted that we shouldn’t apologize for it.