Multiculturalism tolerating cultural difference can block intervention against domestic violence

Evidence

It is on the issue of service provision that it becomes crucial to identify what factors limit the help Muslim women get when they attempt to flee. For the Southall Black Sisters, a principal reason why Muslim women do not get the help they need to flee violence is multiculturalism. SBS argues that an important factor contributing to violence against women and girls in situations of forced marriage are ‘agencies and policy makers [who] refuse to intervene in minority communities on the grounds of respecting cultural difference and on the assumption that minority communities are self-governing. This is based on notions of multiculturalism, or cultural relativism, where different cultures and religions are tolerated and respected. However, while multiculturalism aims to promote racial harmony between communities, it fails to deal with problems within communities.’ In sum, powerful patriarchs control communities and this is a problem multiculturalists refuse to recognize. — Sherene Razack, Casting Out, 329

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clarifies the specific mechanism by which multiculturalism/cultural relativism functions as a barrier to service provision, per SBS.
• XREF: Ties to earlier chapters’ discussion of racial tolerance as a vehicle for racial eviction, and to feminist critiques of multiculturalism (e.g., Susan Okin).