Jens-Martin Eriksen and Frederik Stjernfelt’s The Democratic Contradictions of Multiculturalism, published by Telos Press, is available for purchase here. The following interview with the authors appeared on the Huffington Post.
There is a moment in Jens-Martin Eriksen and Frederik Stjernfelt’s The Democratic Contradictions of Multiculturalism, when an Indian-Malaysian interview subject leans toward Eriksen and entreats him to describe the Malaysian multiculturalism as an “apartheid.” He invokes the infamous example of the erstwhile South Africa to underscore the distinct disadvantage his family experiences as a religious and ethnic minority in their native county with its “hard” form of multiculturalism. This provocative claim raises many questions about how multiculturalism is experienced in different contexts around the world.
An uncannily warm light fills L’Aquila’s 13th century Basilica Santa Maria di Collemaggio. As one approaches the altar, it becomes clear the illumination falls in from the open sky. The roof and dome collapsed in L’Aquila’s catastrophic 2009 6.3 earthquake. While the church is still undergoing repair, much of the edifice appears intact, newly reinforced by concrete and already restored in many parts. In fact, it attests to the continued vitality of this ancient European city as it slowly rebuilds amid various economic, legal and bureaucratic struggles. 
