Many cultures, one community? : Achieving intercultural harmony in Richmond

• Main Author: Aronson, Lesley Cherry
• Language: English
• Published: 2009
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/2429/3600

The multiculturalism policy which Richmond has adopted underscores the importance of nondiscriminatory contact between members of different racial and ethnic groups. Richmond is in the process of a cultural metamorphosis, and it is the position of this paper that constructive intercultural interaction is a necessary precursor to Richmond fulfilling the goals of its multiculturalism policy; and to Richmond planners successfully planning for growth and change. Intercultural understanding rarely occurs by chance, because humans are programmed to think, feel, and behave in an ethnocentric way, as though anyone whose behaviour is not predictable or is peculiar in any way is strange, improper, irresponsible, or inferior. In order to foster successful intercultural encounters, people must be open to the dynamics of change and of attitudes that are less criticizing, less prejuding, less selecting, and less rejecting of other people's and cultures. This paper explores the importance of intercultural training initiatives in helping Richmond residents develop constructive intercultural interaction skills, and in helping planners, new immigrants, and host society members understand one another's cultures, patterns of communication, and the difficulties and discrepancies that they may face when North American planning ideals are implemented in a city where people have different expectations as to what those ideals should be. To carry out this study, key informant interviews were held with the heads of various cultural and multicultural organizations, and civic service departments in Richmond. Recent publications on topics encompassing intercultural interaction, and notes from a debate by five Richmond Secondary School students on the pros and cons of ESL programs were used as secondary data sources. The study suggests that the assumptions outlined are supported by the data collected throughout this research report.