Selling Diversity

Abu-Laban, Yasmeen., & Gabriel, Christina. (2002). Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press.

Chapter 1. Diversity, Globalization and Public Policy in Canada. (11-35)
The authors finds the notion of selling diversity in three public policies--immigration, multiculturalism and employment. They note that multicultural policy, first articulated by the federal government of Liberal Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau in 1971, has been a major means of official recognition of ethnic minorities in the Canadian nation. Recently, however, as they observe, policy-makers akin to neoliberal globalization, which emphasizes global markets and Canadian economic competitiveness, tend to turn certain notions of diversity pertaining to economic competitiveness into a selling point while muting diversity as a commitment to social justice and respect.

The authors affirm that the movement of peoples across national borders is one of the most evident forms of globalization today and a major source of greater diversity. Pointing out the lag of public policies that deal with the diversity, authors argue that some of the richest contributions to policy studies come from feminist scholarship in that while looking into thegendered/differential impact of policies on men and women, they open up space for a critical treatment of other forms of exclusion and marginalization. Yet, they rightly point out that gender analysis of Canadian public policy has not sufficiently interrogated the consequences of policy for ethnic minority and racialized women.

Chapter 4. Multiculturalism and Nation-Building (105-128)
In this chapter, the authors examine the Canadian state's multiculturalism historically. The Prime Minister Trudeau's announcement of a policy of multiculturalism is generally perceived as a state's response to the Quiet Revolution in Quebec, Aboriginal claim and third force from other ethnic groups. As the authors point out, it is interesting to note that Trudeau stood for a policy of multiculturalism within a bilingual framework. The authors argue that this framework early on bears witness to the continued domination of British and to a lesser extent French-origin groups in Canada.

Between 1971 and 1993, the authors state that multiculturalism focused on the cultural maintenance of diverse ethnic heritage such that "song and dance" were much highlighted. They observe a burgeoning linkage between multiculturalism and business interests in the 1980s, as seen in the slogan, "Multiculturalism Means Business", in a conference organized by the Progessive Conservatives in Toronto in 1986. From then on, the Canadian state has made a strong tie between multiculturalism and its international business. The authors argue that now the policy of multiculturalism, which began as a domestic policy, is becoming a selling product with a strong affinity to neo-liberal ideals.

The authors note another type of criticism along with this neo-liberal impetus. Reform Party, in particular, hinged on their advocacy of individual rights and the formal equality of people and provinces--this party also refused a special recognition of Quebec in Canada on the basis of the equality of each province. They argue, according to the authors, that the preservation of cultural background is a matter of personal choice and the state should promote minorities to integrate into the national culture, thus calling for an end to funding of multicultural support.

This conservative and neo-liberal criticism continued after 1993 and the authors note that business value was much stressed while funding for multiculturalism were severely being cut. In particular the authors note popular criticism, particularly in English-Speaking Canada in this period. They draw on the division of private and public spheres in the criticism. They state:

Along with the argument that Canadian multiculturalism weakens national unity, criticisms have centered around the idea that, while the expression of minority languages and culture are acceptable in the private sphere, the state should have no part in upholding them in the public sphere. (p. 106)

The authors argue that the notion of private means the household on the one hand and market and business on the other hand. Thus, multiculturalism as a policy means business to the Canadian state. They write:

While multiculturalism has faced significant cutbacks at the federal government level, at the same time policy-makers have marshalled a globalization discourse to defend multiculturalism policy. Here, policy-makers maintain that "diversity" benefits Canada's international trade and global competitiveness. (p. 106)

Interestingly the authors connect the division of private and public spheres in the dispute on multiculturalism with an implication of gender in multiculturalism. The authors observe the tendency that in the policy discussion, minority/immigrant women are often portrayed within their ethnocultural community, rather than within the structures of racism, sexism and exclusion in Canada. This tendency is tied to the argument for multiculturalism confined to the private sphere. The authors argue: specially for those in favor of multiculturalism only in the private sector, the realm of culture, such as food, language, and customs, is typically associated with women. Positioned in this way, women are more excluded from the realm of the public spheres of politics and work.

The authors observe a similar tension among feminist scholarship, as Okin view that minority women are harmed by multiculturalism, which sustains group rights. In a response to such argument, the authors call for careful dialogue and exchange between men and women within ethnocultural communities as well as the broader Canadian society. The authors quote Sherene Razack's argument on this subject. Razack criticizes that few of feminist scholars have engaged in respectful First/Third dialogue and instead seen Third Women only as subjects, "exotic other females in need of their benevolent protection".