ABSTRACT
In this chapter I want to take up the criticism that multicultural policies threaten to undermine the sense of solidarity that helps bind together the citizens of a culturally diverse democracy into a cohesive and stable political community. Critics fear that when this feeling of solidarity is weakened, or when it is not properly cultivated amongst newcomers to the polity, the members of different cultural groups will have greater difficulty trusting and making sacrifices for one another, and will feel less inclined to work together in common institutions in pursuit of common goals. Even more worrisome is the perception that multicultural policies will feed a sense of ethnic separatism, leading to increased inter-ethnic fear, suspicion and rivalry and the possibility of conflict and bloodshed. To a certain extent, therefore, this chapter moves us away from questions surrounding the justice of multicultural policies towards an analysis of their consequences in a more purely practical sense. Yet this is not entirely accurate, for in many ways the moral and practical implications of multicultural policies are interdependent. For instance, the prevention of violent conflict is not only an essential practical prerequisite of stable democratic governance, it also performs a vital moral function by providing a social and political environment that is conducive to the liberty, security and well-being of citizens. Similarly, when critics object that multicultural policies undermine public support for welfare redistribution they are not just voicing a practical concern but also a concern about a pressing matter of social justice. To understand the relationship between multiculturalism and social cohesion is therefore to understand both of these sorts of concerns and how they are connected.
