Another Diversity Value

In today's New York Times, columnist Thomas Friedman in an op-ed piece entitled "Democracy's Root: Diversity", makes a compelling argument that acceptance of diversity must precede the establishment of democracy.  This makes a lot of sense to me as I look at many nations and cultures around the world - basically the more accepting of diversity they are, the more likely they are to have a thriving democracy.

I don't necessarily think that the U.S. is the leader in this regard by the way.  With our legacy of genocide of native Americans, institutionalized slavery and vigilantism against immigrants and undocumented workers, followed by the slow dismantling of basic constitutional rights such as habeas corpus,  America has lost the high ground on both diversity and democracy.

I would argue that the world leader in both accepting diversity and supporting democracy right now is Germany, followed closely by Britain and the Netherlands.  I have worked in Germany and studied its post-war politics and lived in Britain for 5 years, and my sense is that right now, the U.S. is far behind both of these nations.  Sure, they have their problems: neo-Nazis, skin-heads, militant Islamics.   But, these nations have found a balance: ways of allowing, even encouraging religious, ideological and and cultural diversity while at the same time effectively policing the more radical, violent-bent few.

Comments

[Sharon]

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Sharon

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