Dogmas of Ethnicity

Abstract

Any modern society composed of a number of different ethnic groups must inevitably confront a fundamental question about how public policy is to be determined and acted upon. This question goes back to Aristotle. Should all ethnic groups be treated equally or are there grounds for giving some ethnic groups preference over others? The aim of this chapter is not to arrive at a definitive answer to the question but rather to critically examine some underlying arguments which are often relied upon to support the claim for either equality or preference as the basis of public policy. These arguments, being philosophical, have attained the status of dogmas; rather than being held unthinkingly, they need to be subjected to rigorous scrutiny in order to lay bare their fundamental weaknesses and to expose their limitations as justifications for public policy. Three arguments will be considered: two in favour of equality, cultural relativism and tolerance, and one in support of preference, western science versus indigenous knowledge.