The end of multiculturalism?
(Canscene) — The current confrontations arising from reaction to those Danish cartoons of the prophet Mohammed is stimulating a great deal of speculation on the fate of multiculturalism.
Many view the polarization between Muslim and non-Muslim communities in certain countries as an end to tolerance and the willingness of communities to share space.
Statements in international news media on how Multiculturalism has become imperilled are rife, as violent protests carry the whole issue into the realm of racism.
Unwanted and deliberate provocation
So far, in Canada, however calmer heads have prevailed. Protests against the cartoons have been reasonable and orderly. A number of Muslim clerics have appeared in print, many of them explaining how depiction of Mohammed is considered sacrilegious and trusting that cultural sensitivity will prevail while at the same time deploring violence.
More’s the pity that, even in Canada there has been deliberate provocation; for instance, the reactionary ideologue magazine Western Standard has published the cartoons. Deliberate flaunting of cultural insensitivity like this comes very close to the hate web sites that infest cyberspace. And the fact that Islamic fundamentalist media publish anti semitic cartoons doesn’t hold water.
Two wrongs never made a right!
Note: But the whole question of Standard’s disdain for racial harmony flared up again with a disgusting comment in the magazine about Alberta Premier Ralph Klein’s Métis wife.