Multiculturalism and National Integration: A critical Reflection

Cultural diversity is an ancient reality of human societies, but multiculturalism as an ideology, discourse and policy is a new issue, started since 1970 first in North America, Australia and then spread to Western Europe. This school of thought and pattern for policy-making, although has arisen lately in political and cultural studies, because of its close relationship with different issues such as; globalization, citizenship, minorities, public policy, new social movements, nation-building and in the most important one the identity, social solidarity and national integration appeared as a critical and central topic, attracted attention of thinkers and policy makers. Multiculturalism which emphasized on the "recognition of difference" and "respect for cultural diversity" in public sphere, as a legitimate and desirable element of societies, has a close relationship with social solidarity and national unity. This article examines this relation critically, so it begins with conceptual study of multiculturalism, and influential elements concerning its expansion, and then examines the relation between multiculturalism and national unity and social solidarity. Although the author accepts same of positive consequences of multiculturalism in one hand, and accepts the multi dimensional aspect of criticisms in other hand, but only considers the negative impacts of multiculturalism on national solidarity.