Multiculturalism, Ethnicity, Human rights, Racism

• People and their origin

• What is Multiculturalism?

• Multiculturalism is a believe that it is possible and useful for a society to contain more than one culture.

• A culture is a way of living that is passed on from generation to generation. It includes things like how people dress, where they live, what they eat, what religions they practice and other customs and beliefs. In the past, people from the same country usually shared the same culture. However, today it is easier for people to move from one country to another, and so some cultures can now be found all over the globe.

• Multiculturalism proponents say: M. means that diversity is strength and we can learn from each other in many areas like the arts and philosophy. Then, there are the detractors that feel that some things like language and social customs need to be adpoted by people of other cultures when they emigrate. There is a fear that by allowing multiculturalism in a society that ghettoes, conflicts, and bastions of questionable legal activity may proliferate.

• Multiculturalism is inclusive of all peoples (not a mistake) and respectful of the rights of individuals and groups to maintain and practice their cultural heritage, distinctiveness, growth and evolution.

• Multiculturalism recognizes the richness and strength of ethnocultural diversity.

• Multiculturalism builds community by encouraging people to share, learn, appreciate, respect and accept.

• What is ethnicity?

• According to Fishman, ethnicity "is ethnical self-recognition as well as our recognition in the eyes of outsiders".

• Many other definitions could be listed here but all of them would emphasize the sharing of some learned standards for behavior, social ties by reference to common origins, memories of a shared historical past, shared cultural heritage, religious affiliation, language and dialect forms, tribal affiliation, etc.

• Ethnicity - belonging to a group that shares the same characteristics, such as country of origin, language, religion, ancestry and culture. Ethnicity is a matter of biological and historical fact and is not changed by the culture in which a person grows up.

• People can share the same nationality but have different ethnic groups. For example, citizens of the United States are of many different ethnic backgrounds.

• People who share an ethnic identity can be of different nationalities. Turkish citizens of Turkey and Turkish citizens in Germany share an ethnic identity but are of different nationalities.

• Ethnic groups in the CR

• Czech (94% or 9.6 million);

• Slovak (193,000);

• Roma (200,000);

• Polish (52,000);

• German (39,000);

• Ukrainian (22,000);

• Vietnamese (40,000)

• What are human rights?

• Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, whatever our nationality, place of residence, sex, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, language, or any other status. We are all equally entitled to our human rights without discrimination. These rights are all interrelated, interdependent and indivisible.

• Universal human rights are often expressed and guaranteed by law. International human rights law lays down obligations of Governments to act in certain ways - protect human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals or groups.

• The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a declaration adopted by the United Nations General Assembly (10 December 1948 Paris). The Declaration arose directly from the experience of the Second World War and represents the first global expression of rights to which all human beings are inherently entitled. It consists of 30 articles which have been elaborated in subsequent international treaties, regional human rights instruments, national constitutions and laws. The International Bill of Human Rights consists of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and its two Optional Protocols.

Article 1.

• All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

• Universal and inalienable

  • Universal – not limited by country

  • Human rights are inalienable. They should not be taken away, except in specific situations (imprisonment)

• Interdependent and indivisible

  • All human rights are indivisible, whether they are civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights or collective rights are indivisible and interdependent.

• Equal and non-discriminatory

  • Non-discrimination is a cross-cutting principle in international human rights law.

• Both Rights and Obligations

  • Human rights entail both rights and obligations.

• In the second half of the 19th century, Darwinism, the decline of Christian belief, and growing immigration were all perceived by many white Westerners as a threat to their cultural control.

• HW: name instances of Human Rights violation (Holocaust, KKK, Slavery, etc.)

• What is racism?

• Racism is the belief that a particular race is superior or inferior to another, that a person’s social and moral traits are predetermined by his or her inborn biological characteristics. Racial separatism is the belief, most of the time based on racism, that different races should remain segregated and apart from one another.

• Racism has existed throughout human history. It may be defined as the hatred of one person by another -- or the belief that another person is less than human -- because of skin color, language, customs, place of birth or any factor that supposedly reveals the basic nature of that person. It has influenced wars, slavery, the formation of nations, and legal codes.

• What is racial hate crime?

• Race crime doesn't just mean when someone becomes a victim because of the colour of their skin. It also includes nationality, culture and language.

• Any racial hate crime that is reported to the police is treated seriously, even if it could be classed as a minor incident, because of the fear that racist crime can create within communities.

Anthropologist claim that the original race division into

CAUCASIAN

MONGOLOID

NEGROID

HISPANIC is outdated.

Interracial marriages and children support their theory.

Interracial is an adjective related to a supposed "racial group". It can have different connotations in different contexts:

• Interracial marriage is marriage between two people of different "races".

• Interracial adoption means placing a child of one "racial group" or ethnic group with adoptive parents of another racial group or ethnic group.

• Miscegenation is a usually-derogatory term used to describe the mixing of different racial groups. It refers to marrying, cohabiting, having sexual relations or procreating with a partner from outside of one's racially or ethnically defined social group.

• Thank you for your time.