Salad bowl (concept)

The first references to the concept of “salad bowls” date back to the second half of the 20th century. For the first time, this metaphor was used in contrast to the model of the so-called “melting pot” or “melting pot” (English melting pot ), according to which the inevitable “fusion” of peoples, their national and cultural, takes place in society in the process of formation of national and cultural identity heck.

The popularization of the concept of “salad bowls” is prescribed to Karl Degler . In 1959, one of his works, the historian wrote: “The children of immigrants, even in the third and fourth generation, are still different from the children of the indigenous people. No “melting” occurs, which means that the metaphor of the “melting pot” is unsuccessful and deceptive. A much more accurate analogy is a salad bowl in which one ingredient can be distinguished from another ” ^[3] . Since then, the concepts of a “salad bowl” and a “melting pot” are mentioned in the political discourse as opposing models, each of which can be used as the basis for the ethnic development of society and the integration processes taking place in it.

USA

In the USA, the model of “salad bowls” gained popularity due to the loss of faith in the justice of the idea of ​​a “melting pot” . This concept, closely associated with the concept of Americanization , has become increasingly prescribed "unrealistic and racist in nature, since it focuses solely on the heritage of the West and infringes on the interests of black immigrants" ^[4] .

Over time, the United States began to actively discuss the question: is complete assimilation and abandonment of national values ​​and traditions in favor of American a necessary condition for belonging to American society? Due to the fact that such requirements obviously involve discrimination against minorities and do not comply with the fundamental principles of tolerance, the American public has focused on the concept of a salad bowl, which suggests that in order to feel American, it is enough to have US citizenship and be devoted to the United States.

Theodore Roosevelt expressed the general opinion of Americans when, at first approving the “melting pot” or the “melting crucible,” he wondered if this theory of reality corresponded " ^[5] . Many well-known Americans criticized the" melting pot "in support of the salad bowl. So, Jesse Jackson said: “I hear all this nonsense about the“ melting pot, ”but all I can say is that we have not melted.” ^[6] As a guest of the Oprah Winfrey show , Jane Elliott , in turn, noted: "We do not need a" melting pot "in this country, friends. Well, we "salad bowl", in which we can put lettuce, cucumbers, onions and green peppers, being sure that each ingredient can maintain its identity. We must take into account and preserve the existing differences " ^[7] .

Europe

The concept of “salad bowls” has become relevant for Europe thanks to the creation of the European Union , an economic and political association that includes 28 European states. According to the constitution of the European Union, the fundamental goals of the integration association are to promote the economic, social and territorial integrity of Europe, as well as to preserve the cultural heritage of the EU member states “subject to the principle of respect for the cultural and linguistic diversity of states” ^[8] . The Salad Bowl model is fully consistent with the official motto of the European Union : “Unity in Diversity” (English “United in diversity”), which proclaims the creation of a single European society in which pan-European values ​​exist along with national values, and traditions and national self-awareness of member states remain untouched.

In European realities, the concept of “salad bowls” is of particular importance in the context of the European Union immigration policy, “based on the ideals of multiculturalism and the peaceful coexistence of various groups of the population, preserving their national identity” ^[9] . In accordance with the holistic approach to the integration process, enshrined in the final document of the Council of the European Union on the integration of third-country nationals legally residing in the EU, “integration is a long-term and multilateral process in which the cultural differences of countries and common European values ​​(such as compliance human rights, democracy and the rule of law) deserve equal respect ” ^[10] . Within the framework of the pan-European program for the integration of non-EU citizens (English Common framework for the integration of non-EU nationals ), projects aimed at the integration of persons without EU citizenship are promoted and financed. This activity is designed to promote the development of integration models and initiatives, as well as stimulate appropriate dialogue within civil society.

Canada

In Canada, the concept of “salad bowls” is better known as “cultural mosaic” ^[11] . It is a mixture of ethnic groups, languages ​​and cultures and involves the preservation of national characteristics of migrants in the process of integration ^[12] .

The “ cultural mosaic ” acquired particular popularity at the beginning of the 21st century. On October 1, 2008, Canadian photojournalist Tim Van Horne launched the Canadian Mosaic project, which runs until 2017. July 1, 2017, on Canada Day, one of the country's main museums will host a ceremonial demonstration of the huge Canadian flag , completely consisting of photographs of Canadians. “The goal of the project is to convey the spirit of Canadian society through photographs collected from all regions of the country and including all ethnic and socio-economic groups, subcultures and generations” ^[13] .

A number of criticisms regarding the concept of “salad bowls” are related to the ethical side of the metaphor. Timothy Taylor , an American economist, argues that comparing society to a salad bowl is not tolerant, appropriate, and does not constitute a worthy alternative to a melting pot . “Everyone chooses the ingredients for the salad, following their taste preferences, which means that some components may not get into the salad bowl. It is extremely difficult to maintain proportions, respectively, something will always be less, and something more. In addition, some members of the society will “turn out” to be pale lettuce leaves and oily slices of bacon, while others will turn out to be useful and beautiful products ” ^[14] .

In addition, the very essence of the concept raises questions, because “... in the era of the salad bowl, it is difficult to determine what the nationality is. The absence of a unified system of values ​​and a common history leads to a substitution of concepts: in the public mind, the term “nationality” begins to be equated with the concept of citizenship ” ^[15] .

The concept of the “salad bowl” is criticized, among other things, for the risks associated with the unification of different cultures within the framework of a social community . “The coexistence of cultures that preserve their individuality within the framework of one society can put an end to society as a single whole” ^[16] .

In recent history, one of the precedents for the complete destruction of society, by its nature partially falling under the category of “salad bowls,” is the collapse of the Soviet Union . In accordance with the official anthem of the USSR, the Soviet Union was a “Union of the indestructible republics of the free”, created by the “will of the peoples” ^[17] . This definition makes it possible to consider Soviet society as multinational and multicultural. According to Stalin, "... the period of the dictatorship of the proletariat and the building of socialism in the USSR is the heyday of national cultures, socialist in content and national in form ..." ^[18] .

However, due to the fact that at the time of the creation of the state the concept of a “salad bowl” did not exist yet, and even in the second half of the 20th century it or its analogues did not appear in the political discourse of the USSR, the example of the Soviet Union as a failed “salad bowl” is debatable, theoretical nature. It is worth considering that sometimes the USSR prescribes the features of a "melting pot" ^[19] , and sometimes they even blame it for the destruction of the national identity of some union republics ^[20] . Norman Naimark 's book, “Stalin’s Genocides,” dedicated to Ukraine , can be cited as an example of relevant research. According to Graham Smith, “it was the communist regime that began consciously and purposefully to create ethnolinguistic territorial“ national administrative units ”(that is,“ nations ”in the modern sense), to create where they did not exist before or where no one seriously thought about them, for example, among the Muslims of Central Asia or Belarusians ... the idea of ​​the Soviet republics of the Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek, Tajik or Turkmen “nations” was more of a purely theoretical construction of Soviet intellectuals than a lawsuit nnym aspiration of any of the peoples' ^[21] . The first statement made by Graham Smith was approved by Eric Hobsbaum in his work “Nations and Nationalism after 1780” ^[22] . The idea of ​​artificially created nations also gives rise to doubt that the USSR could be the prototype of a “salad bowl” filled with authentic “ingredients”.

As for the more traditional example of a “salad bowl” - the European Union, which occurred in 2016, Brexit called into question the fundamentality of the EU community. This event confirms the idea of ​​the fragility of a society built according to the “salad bowl” model, the risk of separatist sentiment and the separation of part of a multicultural society. Brexit was not only one of the incarnations of serious contradictions and disagreements among the EU member states, but also presented in a doubtful light the fate of the European “salad bowl”.

Nevertheless, the long experience of the existence of a number of multinational states and stopping the tendencies towards separatism shows that the coexistence of different cultures and ethnic groups within a single community is possible, even if there are separatist sentiments. So, despite the desire for independence, the Chechen Republic is still part of Russia , the autonomous region of Catalonia is part of Spain , Brittany and Corsica are part of France , Flanders is part of Belgium , etc.

• Multiculturalism
• Melting Pot
• Americanization
• UK exit from the European Union
• Separatism in Russia
• Chechen conflict
• Separatism in Spain
• Catalan Independence Movement
• Separatism in France
• Flemish interest