David Cameron announces that multiculturalism has failed in the UK

[SardineQueen]

here this is huge isn't it.

I think that what he has said is a disaster TBH although I struggle to get my thoughts together to express why. Coming ahead of the EDL march today as well it seems spectacularly ill timed. But there things are never ill timed are they - so I assume it is pointed in some way?

What does everyone else make of this?

I live in London and think that the multitude of different people and cultures mixes really well, on the whole. Why tell people they must subsume their cultural heritage - won't that lead to really big problems?

existing thread here.

Cameron was actually referring to Muslims and Muslims alone. He seems to think intergrating them has not worked although he does attempt to differentiate between Islam as a faith and the extremists for the sake of political correctness.
The EDL are jolly happy at this today..

Ah thanks will go over to the other thread.

Are you coming too gypsy?

I think "In The News" is the better home for the subject, but AIBU (where the other is) does get more traffic.

BTW, I don't think he's saying cultural identity should be denied, rather its strengths harnessed within an integrated community.

I have already gone SardineQueen

I read the comments on the other thread with interest as they seem to be counter to my initial reaction. From the article it does seem to be that DC directly pointed to "state multiculturalism" (whatever that is) as being a bad thing and singled out muslims as well. Which is ridiculous as there is no single muslim culture.

So all in all I'm still at a loss as to what he was getting at.

Incidentally the best way of getting people integrated is to make them prosperous. It's not a coincidence that where there are difficulties or tensions it's in areas where is more deprivation, and that people who are new to the country are generally poorer.

Look back over time and people have been worried about each "batch" of immigrants - from West Indians to Irish people and so on. As communities become more established and prosperous integration happens anyway.

That's how I see it anyway.

He dismisses things like economic inequality and anger over hypocritical British foreign policy and says that the single cause of the problem (of young muslim men turning to extremist Islamic ideology) is down to a question of identity. I find this really simplistic and unconvincing tbh.

I wonder what he is building up to with this.

I know they are going to change (have changed?) the immigration laws for people outside the EU. What else could he be building up to I wonder.

The Muslim Council of Britain has posted a response here

The BNP are happy: they're calling Cameron's speech "another milestone in the Griffinisation of British politics"

Cameron was only saying what the rest of the country thought. Sadly he was abouat 20 years too late!

about!

My Muslim freinds say the 'Muslim Council of Great Britain'. Do not speak for Muslims. Who voted for them to represent Muslims? Certainly not Muslims!

Self appointed? Yes that's right!

I didn't say that the MCB spoke for all muslims. Did you read their statement?

Colesworth.
I was not addressing myself to you. As
I realise that the MCB does not represent anyone apart from themselves!

Ah OK, well, the reason I posted the link to the MCB statement was because it was thought that DC was referring to them in his speech, so it's interesting to hear what they have to say about it :)

He said what everyone is too scared to say!

Colyesworth. I don't think Cameron was addressing the MCB, even though they do not represent most Muslims, they still advise the government and did after 7/7. I think Cameron is addressing more radical groups, whom the previous government thought could address the issues of disenfranchised young Muslims, by perhaps reaching out to them. Cameron acknowledges this policy was wrong.
As he says would you give funds to a white far right group so that they could 'reach out to a supremist group?'.
Why doesn't the government address the issues of the disenfranchised white working class youth? (or adults).
The issue of the white working class and their lack of identity was an issue reported widely in the report after the murder of Stephen Lawrence.
Some of the white working class feel disenfranchised/alienated, why is this not being addressed?

Oh sorry, I forgot, if white working class youth were becoming suicide bombers and killing people, the government of the day would be addressing any alienation problems that they may have!

Was the government ever giving funds to extremist organisations? That sounds very unlikely to me.

Coleysworth.

I watched the conference in Munich today and in Cameron's address he says that funding for these groups would be stopped. He did not state which groups. Be interesting to see what groups he actually stops giving money too. I would like to know which groups the Labour Party funded.

i am guessing this is a good excuse to make more cuts..he is so desperate to save money..

The timing of the speech was due to it being a long planned conference on international security; that date wasn't going to change.