Jun 4–6, 2009

Beyond Multiculturalism?

Envisioning the Immigration Society

International Congress
Jun 4–6, 2009

·Just who belongs together with whom, and for what purposes, and on what authority?” (David Hollinger)

Globalization versus nation: The growing momentum of global migration presents an ongoing challenge to the notion of national cultures. The current reality in many immigrant societies is characterized by this tension. The congress asks what current and sustainable models exist for the increasingly diverse immigration societies of the present and future.

The model of multiculturalism, which classified people according to their origin, granted them rights as a group; while turning them into “foreigners” within the majority society, seems outdated. What can a theoretical approach like “super-diversity” offer that takes into consideration such factors as immigration patterns, legal status, multilingualism, age, education? An approach based on the knowledge that our societies and their migrant populations have reached an inner complexity that exceeds anything we have known to date. What action is needed? What policies need to be put into place? What does growing social diversity mean to educational and cultural institutions? What impact does this diversity have on the understanding of culture in Germany and Europe? The international congress discusses these questions with experts from the areas of science, culture and politics.

This event is part of 1989–2009: The House of Cultures and the World

Funded by

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Supported by

ZEIT-Stiftung Ebelin und Gerd Bucerius

Presented by

taz. Die Tageszeitung