Philosophy Research Seminar

Democratic Contradictions of Multiculturalism

Speaker: Frederik Stjernfelt,

Aalborg University Copenhagen, Erskine Fellow in Philosophy

Abstract: The concept of "multiculturalism" comes in a variety of versions, descriptive and normative, soft and hard. It is often overlooked - thus in MC theorists like Kymlicka and Charles Taylor - that strong tensions may appear in the relation between basic democratic norms like human rights and rule of law on the one hand and "hard" multiculturalisms on the other. This paper argues that it is important to articulate a "soft" multiculturalism compatible with basic liberal and democratic principles.

Time: Tuesday 7 March, 11am—1pm

Place: Logie 104