Dr. Ulfried Reichardt

CCGES and the Robarts Centre for Canadian Studies present a talk by Prof. Ulfried Reichardt (Chair of American Studies, University of Mannheim) on Thursday, November 18th from 12:30 to 2:00 pm in 749 York Research Tower (building #95 on the map found here).

“The talk takes as its starting point the question of how we can think with regard to global interconnectedness and which categories might be useful in this context. It suggests that, in a global context, it is necessary to shift one’s perspective several times in order to accommodate different positions. To investigate the ways in which cultural preconceptions frame our concepts, I will discuss different conceptions of diversity and of multiculturalism, mainly in Canada and the United States but in Europe as well.  In addition,  I will consider some theoretical reflections by Charles Taylor and Will Kymlicka. The question becomes particularly insistent within what Kymlicka calls the “new international politics of diversity” in which notions of multiculturalism are adapted (or rejected) within various and often divergent cultural and political contexts. These reflections are then extended to the basic question of the universality of human rights and the possibilities as well as problems of legitimizing them. Here I will discuss proposals by Francois Jullien, Anthony Appiah, and Chantal Mouffe, among others. I will end by arguing that globalization has to be globalized, diversity diverisified.”

All are welcome to this event, but attendees are asked to register at ccges@yorku.ca