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A Communitarian Letter #11
Leveraging Islam by Amitai EtzioniThe National Interest, Spring 2006 Excerpt: “…only moderate Islam can serve as a main source for a moral culture based on persuasion rather than coercion, where individuals accept their responsibilities not because they fear cruel punishments and moral squads but because they find themselves morally bound.” Click here to view a PDF of the article. Please email us at comnet@gwu.edu for a hard copy of the article.
Diversity Within Unity Meeting Features Productive Dialogue by Kristen Bell The idea of Diversity Within Unity guided productive dialogue on issues such as schooling, the relationship between state and religion, and the role of citizenship tests and shared language at our April summit in Brussels on The Rights and Responsibilities of Immigrants and Their New Homelands. Expert contributions from German Secretary of State Peter Altmaier, British shadow Secretary of State for Education David Willetts MP, and former President of the European Parliament Pat Cox sparked dialogue among about 100 international participants who posed insightful questions and offered analytic perspectives on global, transatlantic, Europe-wide, and nation-specific challenges in the realm of integration. The event was hosted in collaboration with the Center for European Policy Studies and the Representation of Baden-Württemberg to the EU. Amitai Etzioni presented the core message of the Diversity Within Unity platform to open the meeting. A nation should not aim to be an assimilationist’s ‘melting pot’ where immigrants become parts of an indistinguishable stew, nor a multiculturalist’s ‘fruit salad’ in which immigrants and other citizens share no ties other than inhabiting the same space. Rather, the guiding image ought to be a mosaic. Immigrants must adhere to a shared framework, but they have the right to diverse as individuals on other important matters. Mr. Willetts presented a British perspective on the application of the Diversity Within Unity platform, discussing the recent introduction of citizenship tests and strategies to regulate Muslim schools. Both Mr. Willets and Mr. Cox tackled the challenge of Muslim education by drawing on lessons from the history of England’s relationship with Ireland. By offering funding and lifting a prohibition on Catholic seminaries in Ireland in the late 18th century, the British were able to have some oversight over the education of priests and ensure that the seminaries did not become hotbeds for violent reform. Willetts and Cox advised that lessons from this legislation could be applied to the debate on Muslim schools today. In addition to discussion about education and church and state, participants raised questions about the Danish cartoon controversy, shared language, the content of citizenship tests, changes in national identity, and employment for immigrants. Dr. Altmaier emphasized that the issue of employment for immigrants cannot be ignored, nor can it be seen solely as an economic issue without a serious social component. He argued that the economic capacity of immigrants is limited by the nation’s capacity for integration. Dr. Altmaier and Chief of the US Citizenship Office Alfonso Aguilar stressed that integration—or ‘participation’ as former Dutch Prime Minister Ruud Lubbers suggested we call it—needs to be a two-way street, and not just in rhetoric alone. According to the DWU platform, both immigrants and their new homelands have rights and responsibilities to one another. Immigrants have the responsibility to adhere to the nation’s shared values and moral culture and the home society has the right to demand such adherence. Conversely, immigrants have the right to diverse on matters ranging from cuisine to religion and the home society has the responsibility to respect and welcome that diversity. Dr. Altmaier indicated that the upcoming German presidency of the EU will focus on working to fulfill to those rights and responsibilities in the realm of integration. Following the success of the summit, we invite all of you to endorse the Diversity Within Unity platform. We believe that every endorsement adds weight and legitimacy to the platform and will bring us closer to our goal of improving the relationships among majority and minority populations in numerous nations. If you find value in our approach, please consider endorsing the platform at http://www.gwu.edu/~ccps/dwu_endorse.html.
Recent Diversity Within Unity Platform Endorsers
Marc Howard – Washington, DC Jack Goldstone – Fairfax, VA Caspar Veldkamp – The Netherlands Philippe Van Parjis – Louvain-la-neuve, Belgium Andrew Geddes – Sheffield, England Leo Semashko – Russia Upcoming EventsEncuentro Iberoamericano de ComunitarismoLocation: Paipa (Boyacá), Columbia July 26-28, 2006Organizers: Presidencia de la República de Colombia Departamento Administrativo Nacional de Economía Solidaria (DANSOCIAL) Ministerio del Interior y de Justicia Gobernación de Boyacá Asociación Iberoamericana de Comunitarismo (AIC) Organización de Estados Iberoamericanos para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura Amitai Etzioni will be giving the opening lecture on the evening of July 26. For more information, please visit www.dansocial.gov.co. The Communitarian Network Essay Contest The Communitarian Network invites you to participate in an essay contest on communitarian thinking! The essay contest has been re-opened beginning April 1, 2006. Submissions will be accepted until June 30, 2006, and the winners will be announced shortly thereafter. There will be no further extensions. No Affirmative Action National Anthems by Amitai Etzioni
I am strongly in favor of much greater representation, respect, and appreciation for the contributions of immigrants in general and those of Hispanic background in particular. I could not be more strongly on the record (for those who care, see THE AMERICAN SCHOLAR and CONTEMPORARY SOCIOLOGY). However I suggest it is a mistake to introduce ethnic specific versions of the national anthem. The basic formula on which the American society is founded is Diversity Within Unity http://dspace.wrlc.org/bitstream/1961/612/1/DWU+2001.pdf. That is, we are not to merely tolerate but celebrate the rich sub cultures various immigrants groups bring to the American society. However, there are some basics all must buy into. All must respect the bill of rights, the democratic way of life, and a few other such shared elements. Hence, the merit of the image of a mosaic, which is richer and more beautiful when the parts are different in shape and color (rather than all be say white)--but also has a shared framework and glue, which hold the pieces together, a frame which itself can be recast over time. Hence, it has been a long and productive tradition for ethnic groups to sing both the national anthem and that of their country of origin, to celebrate both the 4th of July and --"their" independence day, and--to displace both the American and "their' flag. To have ethnic specific NATIONAL anthems, instead of a shared one (which may be modified) cuts into the bone.
An Excerpt from “My Brother’s Keeper”: Reader Reactions? Dear Reader, I’ve spent my lifetime writing. It takes years before I finish a book. At least another one before the reviews appear. And they are often very general. Maybe through this device I can learn more about how readers react to my work. The following passage from “My Brother’s Keeper: A Memoir and a Message” gave me great grief. Was it too intimate? Too emotive? Fine as is? I’d love to hear from you. Please email any comments to me at comnet@gwu.edu with the subject line: Amazon Connect. One gathering especially deserves recounting. Here is the way I journaled it at the time: The family assembled in Amsterdam for a most unusual Bar Mitzvah, that of Daniel, the severely autistic son of my niece. We are delighted to find each others’ arms, and pleased that we made the trek to honor the Dutch branch of the family and the gargantuan efforts we hear the staff made to teach Daniel a few line of the essential prayers for the occasion. Some of us doubt that even given these efforts, Daniel will be able to meet the minimal requirements of ritual that turns youngsters into members of the Jewish community. My mother has no doubt. “No way, never, not in this life. I wonder why they are even trying? The poor boy.” The synagogue is packed. Daniel climbs on the bima with much effort, his parents supporting him on the left and right. On the bima, he is unstable on his feet, drooling on his suit. He smiles apologetically. I wish I could whisper into his ear, “its ok; no matter.” The ritual is started by others, but when it is Daniel’s turn to bless the reading of the Torah, he looks like someone who has a huge egg stuck in his throat, straining to get it out, but he is able to cough up only a little. He flushes as he tries to speak, eking out one or two legible words. He becomes flustered; strains harder, but now only grunts can be heard. We all wish we could just go up there, hug him, say the prayer for him, and end this wrenching scene. Indeed, two members of the congregation who stand on his left and right, chime in. An embarrassed smile occupies Daniel’s face. His body twitches. He is perspiring profusely; his mother keeps wiping it off, which seems to trouble him even more. I am searching desperately for what one could do to spare him even another minute of this very public ordeal. Someone else reads the portion of this week’s Torah the Bar Mitzvah boy is supposed to chant. During the following rounds of prayers Daniel is a bit more relaxed, able to utter a few words he has rehearsed scores of time. The congregation joins in a song praising the Lord, and Daniel hums along; somehow he finds it easier to sing than speak. Then there is a moment of silence. And Daniel suddenly recites, in a clear, though halting voice: “Sh’ma Israel, Adoni Elohenu, Adoni Echad” (Hear, O Israel, the Lord is God, the Lord is One). It is the line Jews, who were given the option by the Inquisition, to eat pork and convert to Christianity or be burned at the stake, recited when they chose to jump into the fire; the line Jews repeated when they finally realized that they were being marched not into showers to be deloused but into gas chambers in the Nazi concentration camps; the line, that more than any other, captures the Jewish essence. There is not a dry eye in the place. The community rises, without any signal from the Rabbi, and breaks with much gusto into a song of thanksgiving. Daniel’s body stops twitching; he seems drained but beams widely. My mother whispers, “my God, he made it.” I don’t know what made for the magical movement; did God interrupt all he is doing to intercede or--did the community’s love carry Daniel over the threshold. I am not even sure what exact difference it makes. I am sure that there was a presence of a kind I never witnessed before. It was surely the most unique family get together of them all. The rest of the year, we stay in touch via a device on which we stumbled: a worldwide family conference call on the first Sunday of each month. While initially these calls were somewhat stiff, we have learned to conduct open and genuine conversations. One of us may seek advice as to whether to quit his job to try his hand at something else, another may wonder about continuing a long-term relationship with a girlfriend, and so on. We give a lot of asked-for (and some unasked-for) advice on bringing up children. If someone is not well, international phone lines buzz, and email messages pile up one on top of the other. Excerpt from: Etzioni, Amitai. “My Brother’s Keeper: A Memoir and a Message.” Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2003. pp. 423-424. Thank you, Amitai Etzioni Click here to visit Amitai Etzioni’s Blog at Amazon Connect Recent Publications
We are pleased to announce the publication of the most recent addition to the Rights and Responsibilities: Communitarian Perspectives series, “Communitarianism in Law and Society” edited by Paul van Seters. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. 2006. In this new collection, Paul van Seters brings together an international group of scholars from diverse academic backgrounds to reflect upon the remarkable rise of communitarianism in contemporary studies of law and society. Taking account of the intricate relationship between law and communitarianism, these contributors critically assess the communitarian perspective in order to gain a more systematic insight into its distinctive constraints and the special opportunities it provides. At its core, this work contends that law necessarily presupposes community, but also essentially extends it. Arguing that communitarianism might be understood as an effort to reconstruct liberalism, and not just debunk it, Communitarianism in Law and Society explores what good is to come of this movement for legal theory and practice. [From Back Cover.]
You may also be interested in “Putting Faith in Neighborhoods: Making Cities Work through Grassroots Citizenship” by Stephen Goldsmith. Hudson Institute, Inc. 2002. We are witnessing a renewed interest in the importance of citizenship in America today. President Bush’s recent call to all Americans to help fight the war on terrorism by reaching out to others through acts of kindness hits on an important reality: the United States is only as strong as its communities, and its communities are only as strong as the citizens they comprise. Large, important national goals such as homeland security are carried out through the vigilance and generosity of real people living in real towns, communities, and cities. This book’s title, “Putting Faith in Neighborhoods”, is a slogan for our times. To the extent that we can have faith in the generosity of one neighbor toward the next, American democracy will be strong. [From Preface.]
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