Multiculturalism or Interculturalism? A Conversation with Ted Cantle

Abstract

In the interview – conducted at Pier Head Building, Cardiff, in October 2014 – we discussed some of the issues related to multiculturalism and interculturalism, in relation to Prof. Cantle's intellectual and academic trajectory. We discussed, for instance, the criticism he has received, on the one hand, for the position he has developed regarding the policy of Interculturalism, and on the other hand for his role as a public intellectual. Given his leading position in the field, and his interdisciplinary approach, Prof. Ted Cantle's is a very interesting one for studies in contemporary Social Sciences and Cultural Studies.

Keywords:

• British Multiculturalism
• Interculturalism
• Ethnic Minorities
• Pluralism
• Public Policy engagement
• Community Cohesion

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Prof. Ted Cantle for his time and help during the interview and the editing process, and Prof. Radhika Mohanram for her insightful advice on interviewing.

Notes

[1] This interview is part of the interviewer's doctoral research project, funded by the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission, UK in collaboration with the Department for International Development and the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India. The main project is aimed at examining the changes in the British multicultural policies and illustrates how these shifts get mirrored to shape the character of British South Asian women's writings and philosophical investigations on cultural diversity – taking into account the contributions influential scholars in the field such as Ted Cantle, Steven Vervotec, Stuart Hall, Will Kymlicka, Tariq Modood and Lord Bhikhu Parekh, whereas the dissertation focuses on the innate relation between the political ‘real’ and the literary ‘imaginary’ and explain how real life experiences provide fuel to ‘diasporic imaginary’ and affirms the transnational potency of literature. Information gathered in this and other interviews, along with other source materials provide a strong basis for the thesis and further long-term research.