Cultural diversity has been present in societies for a long time. In ancient Greece, there were several small regions with different costumes, traditions, dialects, and identities, for example those of Aetolia, Locris, Doris, and Epirus. In the Ottoman Empire, Muslims were the majority, but there were also Christians, Jews, pagan Arabs, and other religious groups. In the 21st century, societies remain culturally diverse, with most countries having a mix of individuals of different races, linguistic backgrounds, religious affiliations, and so on. Contemporary political theorists have labeled this phenomenon the coexistence of different cultures in the same geographic space multiculturalism. That is, one of the meanings of multiculturalism is the coexistence of different cultures.
The term multiculturalism, however, has not only been used to describe a culturally diverse society, but also to refer to a kind of politics that aims to protect cultural diversity (Steinberg, 2009). Although multiculturalism is a phenomenon with a long history and there have historically been countries that adopt multicultural policies, such as the Ottoman Empire, the systematic study of multiculturalism in philosophy has only flourished in the late 20th century, when it began to receive special attention, Especially from liberal philosophers. The philosophers who initially devoted the most time to the subject were mainly Canadians, but in the 21st century it is a pervasive theme in contemporary political philosophy.Before multiculturalism became a subject of political philosophy, most of the literature in this area focused on issues related to the fair redistribution of resources; Conversely, the issue of multiculturalism in the realm of political philosophy highlights the idea that cultural identities are also normatively relevant and that policies must take these identities into account.
To understand the discussion of multiculturalism in contemporary political philosophy, there are four key issues that must be taken into consideration; These are the meaning of the concept of 'culture', the meaning of the concept of 'multiculturalism', the debate on justice between cultural groups and the discussion on the practical implications of multicultural practices.
Definition of culture
Culture is the characteristic and knowledge of a particular group of people, defined by everything from language, religion, cuisine, social habits, music, and the arts.
The Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition goes one step further, defining culture as shared patterns of behaviors and interactions, cognitive constructs, and understanding that are learned through socialization. Therefore, it can be seen as the growth of a group identity fostered by unique social patterns in the group.
The word "culture" derives from a French term, which in turn derives from the Latin "colere", which means to tend to the land and grow, cultivate and cultivate. "It shares its etymology with other words related to actively promoting growth," Cristina De Rossi, an anthropologist at Barnet and Southgate College London, told Live Science.
Many countries are largely populated by immigrants, and the culture is influenced by the many groups of people that now make up the country. This is also a part of growth. As countries grow, their cultural diversity increases.
Definition of multiculturalism
"Multiculturalism" is the coexistence of diverse cultures, where culture includes racial, religious or cultural groups and is manifested in habitual behaviors, cultural assumptions and values, thought patterns and communication styles.
"Multicultural library services" include both the provision of multicultural information to all types of library users and the provision of library services specifically targeted at traditionally underserved groups.
The Section for Library Services to Multicultural Populations addresses the information needs of ethnic, linguistic and cultural minorities to ensure that all members of a library community have access to its services.
In the Section's Guidelines for Library Services to Multicultural Communities, the following groups are described as traditionally underserved in a multicultural society:
1. Immigrant minorities:
This category includes permanent settlers who possess their own language (s) and culture (s) that are different from those of the host society. The category also includes the descendants of immigrants who continue to identify with their ancestral culture.
2. Asylum seekers
Refugees and residents with temporary stay permits.
3. Migrant workers
This category includes temporary immigrant workers and their dependents. They are immigrants who do not intend to stay permanently, and whose legal status is that of temporary resident. They can eventually become permanent residents (category 1), depending on the policies of their country of residence and their own wishes.
4. National minorities
These are indigenous or long-standing groups, with a long-standing ethnic, linguistic or cultural identity distinct from the majority. They may use the primary language of the country (such as Swedish in Finland), or have substantially adopted the primary language of the country (such as Welsh or Native Americans). National minorities can share their language or culture with majorities in adjacent countries, or they can be limited to the country in which they are a minority.
Definition of information
Data that is accurate and timely, specific and purposefully organized, presented within a context that gives it meaning and relevance, and can lead to increased understanding and decreased uncertainty.
Information is valuable because it can affect behavior, a decision, or an outcome. For example, if a manager is told that his / her company's net profit decreased in the last month, he / she can use this information as a reason to cut financial expense for the next month. A piece of information is considered worthless if, after receiving it, things remain unchanged. For a technical definition of information see information theory.
Constant change
No matter what culture a people is part of, one thing is for sure, it will change. Culture seems to have become key in our interconnected world, which is made up of so many ethnically diverse societies, but also plagued by conflicts related to religion, ethnicity, ethical beliefs and, essentially, the elements that make up culture, De said. Rossi. But culture is no longer fixed, if it ever was. It is essentially fluid and constantly in motion. This makes it difficult to define any culture in just one way.
Definition of infomultuculturality
It is the collection of information about the coexistence of various cultures to be presented in a context that gives it meaning and relevance.
Infomulticulturalism in decision-making
The way in which all of us decode information is complex and requires many processes that are carried out internally, for making decisions we need to process the information we have, and this is where our knowledge, beliefs, way of thinking and other cultural bases participate.
Making a decision is mainly personal and is given by people's conception of what is wrong and right, as it is also influenced by the previous processes of discerning information and comparison with previous knowledge and beliefs therefore it can be say that Infomulticulturalism has a great impact on decision-making.
Decision-making is an essential quality of companies, since the choice of a path to follow is of utmost importance, information about the
organization and the external environment, this helps the organization to learn and decision making allows to include the participation of subordinates.
