The Ties that Bind: Kymlicka and the Problem of Political Unity in Multination States

As asserted by Will Kymlicka, the recognition and accommodation of national minorities leads to a dilemma. Indeed, if denying them these rights can contribute to their willingness to secede, allowing them to self-govern can also ultimately lead to the weakening of their ties with the state in which they are integrated. This tension well described in Kymlicka’s Multicultural Citizenship and in his later works remains nonetheless without an explicit solution. This text addresses this question by suggesting that the dialogical dynamic behind the recognition and accommodation of national minorities hides a purely political patriotism stemming from the neo-republican tradition that is complementary to the nationalist sense of attachment that members of national minorities will inevitably come to feel toward their societal culture.

Immigration and Multicultural Citizenship in Europe: Insights from the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities

Multicultural citizenship, a set of group-differentiated rights for minority cultural groups, is now a common feature of most domestic legal systems in Europe. The conventional view, widely reflected in practice, suggests that ‘strong’ rights of this sort should be restricted to so-called ‘historical’ minorities. However, the increasingly long-standing presence of distinct cultural groups of immigrant origin raises the question of whether, and to what extent, the latter should also be granted stronger forms of multicultural citizenship. This article addresses this question by reference to the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, a central pillar of the international minority rights regime in Europe. The article analyses the application of the treaty to immigrant-origin groups in the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom, showing that the scope of protection afforded to such groups is stronger than previously assumed, though less far-reaching as compared to their ‘historical’ counterparts.

Will Kymlicka’s Idea of Multicultural Citizenship Rights and the Nigeria Federation

Will Kymlicka is a Canadian political philosopher using his Federal Canadian society as a basis argued for the recognition of minority rights, in what he calls multicultural citizenship. His idea is that the claims to self-determination or autonomy, protection of a distinct cultural language and special representation need to be accommodated. National minorities should not be forced to integrate as this can lead to violence. Without recognizing the group rights of ethnicities, they will be culturally disadvantaged. Using Kymlicka’s idea in an analytical manner, this paper applies his theory to the Nigerian federation. Despite many years of operating so-called federalism, the system is be-devilled by ethnic agitations, violent militancy, youth restiveness, and many other social ills. The paper theorizes that failure to operate a true federal structure that recognizes and fully accommodates minority rights is a key problem responsible for these social ills. Nigeria is a weak and troubled federation where the rights of national minorities are often neglected, suppressed and denied. When it comes to language, the languages of the three dominant groups in terms of population are privileged over others. Representations in both state and federal establishments are often in favour of dominant ethnic groups. The cries for autonomy and restructuring of the federation are often not heeded. The paper argues that accommodating the rights of minorities can help them integrate and foster a sense of equality in a true federation. It also argues that beyond restructuring, ethical leadership is needed to move the federation forward. The paper finds and concludes that some ideas of Kymlicka can help in creating a peaceful and unified federal Nigeria

FL Teaching and Learning as a Gateway for Democracy in the 21st Century

Responding to the conflicting public perspectives about pedagogical approaches to, and purposes for, language teaching and learning, the authors suggest ways to reconceptualize foreign language (FL) teaching and learning as a springboard toward multicultural citizenship and social justice. The authors propose an approach to FL teaching that aims to develop learners’ information, media, and technology literacies as well as life and career skills, which are vital to succeed in a 21st-century global environment, and to empower them to become engaged citizens and agents of social change in their communities. By reframing FL and culture instruction within a social justice perspective, we devise new and creative ways to make the teaching of FL relevant to collegiate education and at the core of the university mission.

A case of mistaken identity : reconceptualizing the citizen in multicultural Canada

As immigration continues to transform the ethno-racial composition of Canada, growing evidence of barriers to integration compels a re-evaluation of multiculturalism. Integration based on multicultural citizenship problematizes immigration by reproducing exclusionary nationalism and essentializing culturalism. The concept of citizenship preserves the myth of a national community although global issues manifest within national borders and local policies prioritize global capital. While multiculturalism implies cultural equality, the reality is a social hierarchy influenced by shifting identities resulting from migration and a constructed 'Canadianness' stemming from colonization. To replace the one-sided approach of immigrant obligation with mutual responsibility, integration must challenge the nationalist/culturalist tendencies of multicultural citizenship by reconceptualising the citizen from a critical transnational perspective that connects the local with the global. Therefore, this paper will present a revised concept of citizenship based on interdependency, which contradicts nationalism by localizing global inequality and challenges culturalism by globalizing local identities.

A case of mistaken identity : reconceptualizing the citizen in multicultural Canada

As immigration continues to transform the ethno-racial composition of Canada, growing evidence of barriers to integration compels a re-evaluation of multiculturalism. Integration based on multicultural citizenship problematizes immigration by reproducing exclusionary nationalism and essentializing culturalism. The concept of citizenship preserves the myth of a national community although global issues manifest within national borders and local policies prioritize global capital. While multiculturalism implies cultural equality, the reality is a social hierarchy influenced by shifting identities resulting from migration and a constructed 'Canadianness' stemming from colonization. To replace the one-sided approach of immigrant obligation with mutual responsibility, integration must challenge the nationalist/culturalist tendencies of multicultural citizenship by reconceptualising the citizen from a critical transnational perspective that connects the local with the global. Therefore, this paper will present a revised concept of citizenship based on interdependency, which contradicts nationalism by localizing global inequality and challenges culturalism by globalizing local identities.

Multiculturalism beyond citizenship: The inclusion of non-citizens

This article questions multiculturalism’s reliance on citizenship as a default condition of inclusion. While agreeing with multiculturalists that there are groups within the citizenry who are excluded from citizenship rights on the basis of their cultural background, this article highlights the misrecognition of non-citizens that is yet unaccounted for by Anglophone theories of multiculturalism where eligibility to multicultural rights-claiming hinges on the condition of formal citizenship. The status of non-citizenship affects conceptions of ‘difference’ where representations of cultural ‘otherness’ are compounded by the ‘foreignness’ of non-citizens. Frameworks of multicultural citizenship entail recognition through group-specific rights, but only for citizens, in so doing excluding the needs and rights of non-citizens. The assumption made by multiculturalists is that citizenship is a condition of multicultural rights and/or recognition despite scenarios where non-citizens may not desire the citizenship of their host country, or the idea of ‘belonging’ it is attached to. Appealing to multiculturalist principles and the neo-republican notion of non-domination, I argue that multiculturalism as a theory can challenge the limitations of citizenship by expanding its compass to include non-citizens as multicultural subjects.