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George Crowder (2013), Theories of Multiculturalism: An Introduction . Oxford : Polity Press . £16.99, pp. 256, pbk.
Multiculturalism has received a lot of bad press lately. Apparently, to name but a few of the charges raised against it, it leads to segregation and undermines national cohesion. But as Crowder (pp. 5-13) notes, it is not always clear what is meant when people criticise - or, for that matter, defend - multiculturalism, as the concept proves notoriously elusive. Theories of Multiculturalism: An Introduction helps to untangle some of this confusion by exploring different responses to multiculturalism (both approving and critical). In so doing, it injects some much-needed clarity into the sometimes heated public debates that shape how societies experience and live with their diversity and devise public policy responses to it. While the book does not really go into social policies much, it addresses the political orientations underlying such policies and more specifically whether the latter should publicly recognise cultural diversity or not. Its real contribution is scholarly: Crowder provides an excellent and comprehensive introduction to the debate on multiculturalism in contemporary political theory that is sure to leave students new to the field with a firm grasp of the most important arguments. At the same time, the book also offers something to those already well-versed in multicultural theories as Crowder stakes out his own position, which is best characterised as a form of liberal value pluralism.