What is black culture? Does it have an essence? What do we lose and
gain by assuming that it does, and by building our laws accordingly?
This bold and provocative book questions the common presumption of
political multiculturalism that social categories such as race,
ethnicity, gender, and sexuality are defined by distinctive cultural
practices. Richard Ford argues against law reform proposals that would
attempt to apply civil rights protections to "cultural difference."
Unlike many criticisms of multiculturalism, which worry about "reverse
discrimination" or the erosion of core Western cultural values, the
book's argument is primarily focused on the adverse effects of
multicultural rhetoric and multicultural rights on their supposed
beneficiaries. In clear and compelling prose, Ford argues that
multicultural accounts of cultural difference do not accurately
describe the practices of social groups. Instead these accounts are
prescriptive: they attempt to canonize a narrow, parochial, and
contestable set of ideas about appropriate group culture and to
discredit more cosmopolitan lifestyles, commitments, and values. The
book argues that far from remedying discrimination and status
hierarchy, "cultural rights" share the ideological presuppositions,
and participate in the discursive and institutional practices, of
racism, sexism, and homophobia. Ford offers specific examples in
support of this thesis, in diverse contexts such as employment
discrimination, affirmative action, and transracial adoption. This is
a major contribution to our understanding of today's politics of race,
by one of the most distinctive and important young voices in America's
legal academy.
Les mer
A Critique
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9781400826308
Publisert
2013
Utgiver
Vendor
Princeton University Press
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Antall sider
248
Forfatter