Celebrating Our Cultural Differences
Celebrating Our Differences
Philosophically Profundity or Psycho-Babble
By: ET
I truly do not understand the concept of celebrating our differences. While it makes for a great political slogan, in reality, it is an oxymoron. The concept, on its face, is divisive, destructive, and xenophobic.
The concept is sold as some kind of political big tent where all divergent cultures are welcome, but in fact, it is merely a political stunt used to buy votes.
Cultures don’t peacefully coexist by celebrating the very things that make their cultures different. The only way an educated polite society can evolve into a cohesive civilization is for individual cultural groups to celebrate the values that the larger homogenous civilization shares.
In any societal setting, a single social sub-group that focuses solely on its cultural uniqueness as it relates to the larger civilizations, in which it exists, tends toward xenophobic attitudes. They remain closed off from the evolution of the larger civilization as a whole. Focusing solely on the uniqueness of the individual cultures blocks the individuals and their children from the shared over aching values of the larger group. Hence the smaller groups never fully homogenize into the larger civilization.
We see this in immigrant communities where there is virtually no English spoken. Street signs are printed in either a different language or an altogether different alphabet.
Some cultures are so alien that there is no possible way to celebrate their differences. One example would be clitorectomies being performed on young girls so that they will never enjoy sex or even be able to have an orgasm. I ask you. Is that a cultural difference that we can all celebrate? This is only one of a multitude of cultural differences that are impossible to celebrate. Indian tribe known as the Totopara in the Alipurduar district of West Bengal India were known to kill firstborn children, if they were female, by throwing them off of the cliffs. Again, is that a cultural difference we should celebrate, or attempt to change. In today’s politically charged America being appalled by that kind of behavior would make you a racist. By that measure, should we help them to climb higher on the cliffs or should we try to change that kind of backward thinking?
I am by no means saying all divergent cultures are this extreme; however, as you study history and the cultures from around the world you would be very surprised. Something not so quite extreme, but equally foreign to me is the fact that only recently have women in some middle eastern countries been allowed the privilege of learning to drive a car. Should we then celebrate the subjugation of women? Is it racist of me to be happy women trapped in these cultures are being allowed at least a modicum of autonomy in their own lives?
There is a moral line that one cannot cross in many instances when it comes to cultural norms. We have our cultural idiosyncrasies that I am sure would be totally foreign to people from other cultures. Women in the free western countries wear revealing clothing and do not cover their heads unless they are wearing a stylish hat, or the weather requires it. I am sure that kind of behavior would shock many cultures around the world. So, there is a question that comes to mind in this kind of situation. Are those cultures shocked by western women’s dress and demeanor being intolerant if they require women who visit those countries to cover their heads and dress appropriately when out in public, or are they racist for wanting their cultural norms respected?
There cannot be two standards. If it is appropriate for visitors to very conservative traditionally Muslim countries respect the cultural norms of the societies they are visiting or immigrating to, then it is certainly reasonable to require visitors to western countries to comport with the cultural norms of the countries they are visiting or immigrating to. It is not racist, hateful, or intolerant. It is just common sense.
This brings me to the crux of the problem. When we say that it is racist and xenophobic to value your cultural norms above others, what cultural norms should be adhered to in a homogeneous civilization. If anything, there are innumerable disparate cultural norms that any inclusive civilization has to tolerate. However, mere toleration of a cultural uniqueness doesn’t create a cohesive polite society in which to exist, do business, raise children, live, and prosper.
Wouldn’t it be a more reasonable notion for any large homogenous civilization to adopt simple values dear to most if not all of the disparate cultures represented? Once those values are defined and codified it becomes incumbent upon every disparate group to adopt and respect those cultural norms.
This is, by no means, to say that unique cultures must abandon their uniqueness in any real way. It merely requires them to adopt the cultural norms and mores of their new home and respect them.
It has always confounded me that people from oppressive, corrupt, downright evil cultures immigrate to a free open democratic society and bring all of their anger and hate with them. Immigrating to a new country and insisting it become your old country seems to be utterly schizophrenic. If you enjoyed living in a corrupt, socially restrictive, overbearing theocracy why immigrate.
We can only celebrate the cross-cultural hierarchy of values shared around the world.
1) Everyone speaking an agreed-upon language writing laws and doing business.
2) Murder is wrong. Respect the lives of others.
3) Stealing property from others who have acquired it through hard work is wrong.
4) Respect for the elders of our society is good
5) Respect for fair play in business and personal dealing
6) The love we all feel for our children.
7) Respect for true quantitative scientific research regardless of the political ramification.
8) Respect and adherence to quantitative scientific education untainted by political propaganda
9) A universal respect for the truth at all costs.
10) Respect for transparency in government
This list is by no means exhaustive, but it’s a good start.