Multicultural Citizenship: A Liberal Theory of Minority Rights

by Will Kymlicka

Overview

The increasingly multicultural fabric of modern societies has given rise to many new issues and conflicts, as ethnic and national minorities demand recognition and support for their cultural identity. This book presents a new conception of the rights and status of minority cultures. It argues that certain sorts of 'collective rights' for minority cultures are consistent with liberal democratic principles, and that standard liberal objections to recognizing such rights on grounds of individual freedom, social justice, and national unity, can be answered. However, Professor Kymlicka emphasises that no single formula can be applied to all groups and that the needs and aspirations of immigrants are very different from those of indigenous peoples and national minorities. The book discusses issues such as language rights, group representation, religious education, federalism, and secession - issues which are central to understanding multicultural politics, but which have been surprisingly neglected in contemporary liberal theory.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780191520976
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	06/01/1995
Series:	Oxford Political Theory
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	410 KB

About the Author

Will Kymlicka is Research Director of the Canadian Centre for Philosophy and Public Policy at the University of Ottawa, and Visiting Professor, Department of Philosophy, Carleton University. His previous books include: Liberalism, Community and Culture; Contemporary Political Philosophy and Justice in Political Philosophy.

Editorial Reviews

"This is a very important book, one that is indispensable for the present discussion of multiculturalism....An immensely rich, informative, and above all clarifying work, written by a first-class philosophical mind, animated by a humane outlook. It ought to be compulsory reading for all those who want to carry on the debate in this area."—American Political Science Review

"In a powerful argument for the compatibility between liberal theory and "group differentiated rights," Kymlicka resolves the tension between liberalism and group rights by contending that individuals must exist within a "societal culture" in order to express their political and cultural identity....An important addition to liberal theory and necessary for students and scholars at all levels."—Choice

"Will Kymlicka is among the most important and interesting liberal political theorists writing today."—International Affairs

"Clear, unpolemical, and open-minded, it nicely marries normative political theory and institutional analysis...This is a fine book, and the one to which students of multiculturalism must first be sent."—The Journal of Politics

From the Publisher