Interculturalism refers to support for cross-cultural dialogue and challenging self-segregation tendencies within cultures. Interculturalism involves moving beyond mere passive acceptance of a multicultural fact of multiple cultures effectively existing in a society and instead promotes dialogue and interaction between cultures.
“Multiculturalism” is the co-existence of diverse cultures, where culture includes racial, religious, or cultural groups and is manifested in customary behaviours, cultural assumptions and values, patterns of thinking, and communicative styles.
Where I work, The Darebin Intercultural Centre in Preston, Australia, the first ethos was chosen by the Darebin Council specifically because multiculturalism was being given a bad name in the media because of supposed self-segregation of cultures creating cultural ghettos, this was not necessarily true but mainstream media have never let that get in the way of a news story that sells papers or attracts viewers.
This is where I created my life ethos: Love and Respect for All, Everyone Included and my Facebook Group, Interculturalism from, the group’s purpose is to spread the possibility of dialogue between cultures and positive examples of this: You can join here.
How do we create this in our lives, here are a few ways to give it a go suggested by my friend Marc Chernoff:
1. Never let a bad day make you feel like you have a bad life.
2. Tell the negativity committee that meets inside your head to sit down and shut up.
3. Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learning to dance in the rain.
4. You look the best when you wear your smile. There is no beauty like the one that comes from inside you.
5. Moving on doesn’t mean forgetting. It means you choose happiness over the hurt.
6. Grudges are a waste of perfect happiness.
7. Someone else is happy with far less than what you have.
8. You are always free to do something that makes you smile.
9. Talk about your blessings more than you talk about your problems.
10, Stop looking at what you have lost, so you can see what you have.
11. Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.
12. if you don’t like something, change it. if you can’t change it, change the way you think about it.
13. Life does not have to be perfect to be wonderful.
14. The more you love your decisions, the less you need others to love them.
15. A bad attitude is like a flat tire, you can’t get very far until you change it.
16. Just because it doesn’t last forever, doesn’t mean it wasn’t worth your while.
So what has the world said about the melding of cultures, here are a few of my favourite things:
1, Nelson and I have the same dream.
2. Parenthood 101: Love Liberates.
3. 7 Billion unique personalities, all living on the same planet, all human beings.
4. They say the quickest way to cure racism, is to travel. You quickly realise that we all have one commonality, our humanness: Wide Open Road.
5. Catherine said: In today’s society, change is constant. Although change has always occurred in every society, today it is much more rapid, due to technological advancements and a global market.
If you resist change, you will face challenges on a daily basis. If you consciously refocus your attitude to see the benefits of change, your outlook becomes positive and life becomes easier.
6. There is no planet B, we need to remember that and work together as one human race: Let’s Work Together.
7. Not just to get the 9 to 5 drone job.
8. God, Gaia, Buddha, Allah: They did not take sides, their language was universal love: One Love.
9. Perhaps it would have been better if we were all born deaf and dumb?
10. This is powerful: Human.
11. If a Nobel Prize winner can do it, we can as well.
12. In April 2009, Entertainment Weekly listed Spencer as among its “25 Funniest Actresses in Hollywood.” Was she being funny when she made this statement?: Labels.
13. Doe Zantamata is an author, artist, and photographer. In addition to the Happiness in Your Life book series, she also creates and designs poster books of different titles, including “Happy By Nature,” “Old Children, A Book for “Adults”,” and others. Doe has been writing since before she could tie her shoes.
14. Says the man who transformed the ugliest example of racial bigotry on the planet: Nelson Mandela.
15. Our final lesson, each person is unique, but they are still a person. Have a chat and find out about them, anything else is a judgement.
To me, curiosity about each other promotes dialogue and interaction between cultures. the quote: Become friends with people who aren’t your own age, Hang out with people whose first language isn’t the same as yours, Get to know someone who doesn’t come from your social class, This is how you get to see and know the world, this is how you grow sums it up pretty well for me. I’m going to give more time to spreading Love and Respect for All, Everybody Included in 2020, hence this blog.
We begin today’s playlist with Spoken Word by the majestic Maya Angelou, then an iconic Aussie band, The Triffids. Back to the Woodstock generation next, with Canned Heat. A medley from Bob Marley sends Love out into the Universe. Rag and Bone Man points out next what it is to be Human. Pop Diva time with Rachel Platten and we finish with The Specials: You will be Somebody’s Ancestor – Act Accordingly!!!
Until we meet again across the airwaves, my dear friends.
I am an Interculturalist 