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CULTURAL RELATIVISM
What is
Cultural Relativism?
Cultural
Relativism
is the view that all beliefs are equally
valid and that truth itself is relative, depending on the situation,
environment, and individual. The famous educator John Dewy stated that
Cultural relativism is the view that all ethical truth is
relative to a specific culture. Cultural relativism is whatever
a cultural group approves is considered right within that culture.
Conversely, whatever a cultural group condemns is wrong. If there is
no transcendent ethical standard, then often culture becomes the
ethical norm for determining whether an action is right or wrong. This
ethical system is known as cultural relativism. The key to
cultural relativism is that right and wrong can only be judged
relative to a specified society. There is no ultimate standard of
right and wrong by which to judge culture.
At
United
Front, we have directed Cultural Tolerance camps in Arizona
for teens for the last 11 years where cultural relativism has
become relevant. In a cultural appreciation exercise, cultural
relativism was noticed. In the exercise many group gathered
together to learn of each other. There was a Native American group
that was from a tribe in central Arizona who had visited our camp for
the first time. The Native American group had chosen one of their own
teens to speak for all of them. This young man stated these words:
"For the last 130 years, the white man has tried to put in
reservations, taken our land, and destroy the ways of our people. You
have no idea what our people have been through. We don’t want to
participate in your group activities because you don’t understand us
or are aware of what your people have done to us. You don’t know our
suffering."
A Hispanic teen
spoke up and said "You want to talk about pain and getting ripped off.
The land that you are standing on was once Mexico and it belonged to
my ancestors at Treaty of Hildago which the Americans stole Mexican
land. Our people were treated as second class citizens and they’re not
wanted in this country even though it was there home to begin with and
it has been over 150 years."
A young black
man then stated "Well, try being put as slaves for over 200 years by
the white man. My people have been bought, sold, and treated like
cattle. We have been degraded, whipped, butchered, and murdered. So
you tell me who has suffered more, you or us."
A Jewish teen
then stated "You guys talk about 130 years, 150 years, and 200 years
of hurt, pain, and mistreatment. Well, try over 5000 years of all the
terrible things you have mentioned. Our people have had our land taken
from us , we have had our culture taken from us, and we have been
slaves to other countries. So who has suffered more, you or us. Why
are we taking about pain? In reality, it is not our pain, it the pain
of our ancestors. We have an opportunity to change our present and
future. Let’s not count each other’s pain anymore but lets come to the
table of brotherhood and make a difference so that our kids won’t have
to count our pain.
In this example,
all cultural group ancestors had experienced injustice but in terms of
cultural relativism all groups experiences were valid and
relative to their own cultures. One could not say one was right or
wrong but only those experiences happened and had a profound affect on
the culture itself.
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United
Front - Chandler, AZ - 480.821.5225 or 602-931-1150 |
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