The Politics of Diversity: Pluralism, Multiculturalism and Mental Health

Abstract

which would aggravate mental health problems, and impede access to safe, equitable, and effective health care for minorities (Kirmayer & Guzder, 2014). While the political debate was an important opportunity to articulate competing visions of society, it also provoked an escalation of hateful speech and acts toward women wearing veils and other groups in public settings (CBC, 2013). The PQ government's rhetoric during public consultations on the Charter gave permission to some of the most reactionary regressive segments of society to voice their prejudices. The government seemed unconcerned about this debasement of public discourse, perhaps because their real interest was the deliberate mobilization of xenophobia to promote their brand of ethno-linguistic nationalism. During the debate, some Quebecois self-described ''feminists'' asserted that they were in solidarity with a group of Muslim immigrant women from the Maghreb, Middle East and France who were in favor of the Charter (e.g., Bertrand, 2013). These women viewed the Charter as a helpful constraint on Islamic fundamentalism symbolized by the veil, which they saw as a signifier of female oppression. Of course, this view did not acknowledge the wide variation in identity and motivations of women who choose to wear headscarves or coverings for personal, spiritual, or other reasons (Bilge, 2010; Eid, 2015). Indeed, many in Quebec read the veil not only in terms current anxieties about Muslims (Bakali, 2015), but also through the lens of Quebec history, in which the Catholic church was dominant until the 1960s and nuns in habit were a common sight in public space. The Quiet Revolution (La re´volution tranquille), which overthrew the dominance of the Church, made this religious dress a symbol of a bygone, ''backward'' and, at times, oppressive past (Seljak, 1996). As Joppke (2009) has noted, debates about the veil have held up a mirror to different nations' approaches to collective identity and notions of inclusion. 3 The silence of many francophone institutions and intellectuals-and outspoken support for the Charter by some celebrities and academics (Tessier & Montigny, 2016)-lent legitimacy to the Charter's perspective, leaving newcomers and minority groups increasingly vulnerable to the forces of political repression and everyday prejudice. Reported incidents of racial slurs and attacks on Muslims increased after the Charter debate began in September 2013. In this issue, Ghayda Hassan and colleagues (2019) document the intercommunity tensions following the societal debate over the Charter of Quebec Values. Their survey of young francophone adults in community colleges identified ''a shift from a predominantly positive perception of intercommunity relations to a predominantly negative one, particularly among women, immigrants, and those who self-identified as cultural or religious minorities'' (Hassan 2019, p. 1148). While their survey could not assess the magnitude of the increase in intercommunity tension before and after the debate, they found that ''more t...

Refugee mental health and human rights: A challenge for global mental health

“…Even after acceptance, however, refugees face many stresses related to rebuilding their lives in a new land. This can be exacerbated by racism, xenophobia, and other forms of marginalization and discrimination, which are fueled by local and global politics (Kirmayer, 2019). Hocking (2021) studied the experience of asylum seekers awaiting determination of their refugee status in Australia.…”

Innovation, Recreation, Interpretation? A Case Study on the Origins and Implementation of Transversal Core Competencies in Finnish Basic Education Core Curriculum Reform 2016

“…Quite suddenly, Finnish national culture was found to be born from cultural interaction, and multiple, diverse origins (FNBE, 1985;,FNAE, 2016Rokka, 2011;cf. Hobsbawm, 1992; see also Albrecht & Kavabenick, 2019;Hobsbawm & Ranger, 1989;Holm & Zilliacus, 2009;Kolbe, 2003;Kirjavainen & Pulkkinen, 2017;Kirmayer, 2019;cf. Kolbe, 2003;Pyhältö et al, 2014;Virta, 2009).…”

“…To have a proper, comprehensible and (often) virtuous national "us", a different but comparable "other" had also been needed from outside. BEC 2016 was the first Finnish curriculum that broke this educational document tradition of united national "us" (FNBE, 1985, FNAE, 2016Hobsbawm, 1992;Albrect & Kavabenick, 2019;Kaplan et al, 2019;Kirjavainen & Pulkkinen, 2017;Kirmayer, 2019; see also Loima, 2006;Mahon, 2006;Smith, 1991;Virta, 2009;cf. Vitikka et al, 2012).…”

“…The program also guaranteed annual minimum lessons for pupils' cultural studies. Consequently, cultural education document enhanced intrinsic motivation of multicultural schools and supported pupils' skills to comprehend diversity locally, thus enhancing cultural interaction and opportunities for new means of identifiable togetherness and 'belonging' (Albrech & Kavabenick, 2019;Butler, 2019;Hecht et al, 2019;Kaplan et al, 2019;Kirjavainen & Pulkkinen, 2017;Kirmayer, 2019;Loima, 2006;Mahon, 2006;Smith, 1991; see also Virta, 2009). In addition to previous dimensions, there were no documented signs of local inequity.…”

“…Local cultural education program was thus a declaration of cultural rights, and an acceptable, individual learning aid, for immigrated and all families. By and large, cultural swift to diversity in steering curriculum had been an outstanding strategic attempt to diminish structural and socio-cultural inequity countrywide from the very beginning (Albrect & Kavabenick, 2019;Alderman, 2008;Kaplan et al, 2019;Kärkkö, 2019;Kirjavainen & Pulkkinen, 2017;Kirmayer, 2019;Pirinen, 2015). The Data offered by principal revealed the similar situation at school.…”