How do Scandinavians feel about a multicultural Scandinavia in the future?

How do Scandinavians feel about a multicultural Scandinavia in the future?

NordenBladet –  Sweden was the first country to adopt an official policy of multiculturalism in Europe. In May 1975, a unanimous Swedish parliament passed an act on a new multiculturalist immigrant and ethnic minority policy put forward by the social democratic government, that explicitly rejected the ideal ethnic homogeneity and the policy of assimilation. The three main principles of the new policy were equality, partnership and freedom of choice.

The explicit policy aim of the freedom of choice principle was to create the opportunity for minority groups in Sweden to retain their own languages and cultures. From the mid-1970s, the goal of enabling the preservation of minorities and creating a positive attitude towards the new officially endorsed multicultural society among the majority population became incorporated into the Swedish constitution as well as cultural, educational and media policies. Despite the anti-multiculturalist protestations of the Sweden Democrats, multiculturalism remains official policy in Sweden.

A 2008 study which involved questionnaires sent to 5,000 people, showed that less than a quarter of the respondents (23%) wanted to live in areas characterised by cultural, ethnic and social diversity.

A 2014 study published by Gävle University College showed that 38% of the population never interacted with anyone from Africa and 20% never interacted with any non-Europeans. The study concluded that while physical distance to the country of origin, also religion and other cultural expressions are significant for the perception of cultural familiarity. In general, peoples with Christianity as the dominant religion were perceived to be culturally closer than peoples from Muslim countries.

A 2017 study by Lund University also found that social trust was lower among people in regions with high levels of past non-Nordic immigration than among people in regions with low levels of past immigration. The erosive effect on trust was more pronounced for immigration from culturally distant countries.

How do Scandinavians feel about a multicultural Scandinavia in the future? Here are also some thoughts by Kjell Andersson, who answered to this question in Quora.

Aspects of Swedish culture

Consider the state as a clan. All loyalty that clan members pay to their clan must instead be payed to the state.
Individual rights triumphs family rights.
Work is a secret mission. Work is a holy duty. No work is degrading.
Egality is necessary. We are all peers. Stick to your peers (The law of Jante is for real. Fear it)
Gender equality is natural
Sexuality is a private matter. Do not have opinions about others sexuality.
Religion is a private matter. Do not have opinions about others religion
Be humble. Do not show off (The law of Jante. Do not forget it)

Elite perspective

Swedish culture is the the norm for human culture.That is becaus Swedish culture is embodying modernity. Humanity is developing towards modernity. Sweden has been able to develop more then others. Conclusion: All humans want to be like us. Swedish culture is the best and only option.

Multiculturalism is a great thing but it is only supposed to be affecting people on very superficial level. Ethnic minorities are supposed to be different. Maybe they will wear a funny hat. Look at Swedish Jews! They like to wear a kippa! Not every day but maybe once a year at a special occasion.

People who oppose Multiculturalism are idiots! How can someone deny another person the pleasure of once a year dress up and wear a funny hat! And what is the problem with a Thai restaurant?

Proletariat perspective

Life used to be easy. The police kept law and order. Social secretary distributed welfare. There were criminal kids but they usually shaped up and became ordinary workers. The suburban Center was ment for women who went shopping and socialised while their men was working. People were poor but peaceful

Today the police has withdrawn. The suburban Center is populated by men. Men of non Swedish ethnicity. Some of them are drug dealers. Some of them feel a special responsibility to inflict Muslim values on people they meet.

The new environment is a competitive world. To survive you have to be member of a team. You have to have a gang. Gangs are organised after ethnicity. Every ethnicity is fighting to gain superiority. You can not have a conflict with your clan leaders. Women are property of their clan. Women who are not property of a clan are free game.

The poor Swedes who have to live in the multicultural suburbs are not always positive towards Multiculturalism*
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The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, of political philosophy, and of colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for “ethnic pluralism”, with the two terms often used interchangeably, for example, a cultural pluralism in which various ethnic groups collaborate and enter into a dialogue with one another without having to sacrifice their particular identities. It can describe a mixed ethnic community area where multiple cultural traditions exist (such as New York City) or a single country within which they do (such as Switzerland, Belgium or Russia). Groups associated with an aboriginal or autochthonous ethnic group and foreigner ethnic groups are often the focus.

In reference to sociology, multiculturalism is the end-state of either a natural or artificial process (for example: legally-controlled immigration) and occurs on either a large national scale or on a smaller scale within a nation’s communities. On a smaller scale this can occur artificially when a jurisdiction is established or expanded by amalgamating areas with two or more different cultures (e.g. French Canada and English Canada). On a large scale, it can occur as a result of either legal or illegal migration to and from different jurisdictions around the world (for example, Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain by Angles, Saxons and Jutes in the 5th century or the colonization of the Americas by Europeans, Africans and Asians since the 16th century).

Multiculturalism as a political philosophy involves ideologies and policies which vary widely. It has been described as a “salad bowl” and as a “cultural mosaic” – in contrast to a melting pot.

Featured image: NordenBladet

 


Tags assigned to this article:
futureKjell AnderssonMulticulturalismSweden

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