Project
Cultural pluralism has posed a major problem for democracy: how can the diversity of cultures be reconciled with a politics of equality? Globalization has, according to some, added a new urgency to this problem. It has not, however, eliminated a certain passive isolationism in the intellectual sphere due, in the best cases, less to xenophobic prejudice than to a common language, a shared cultural tradition or a lack of institutional coordination. Hence the necessity of creating forums of debate for a transnational inquiry into the relationship between democracy and culture at the opening of the 21st century.

In the present case, it is a matter of introducing to the French-speaking public some of the major participants in the international debate on multiculturalism. The conference participants who have been chosen not only represent some of the most important positions in the current phase of the debate, but they also attest to a long-standing interest in postwar European thought. In spite of the small number of translations of their most recent work into French, some contemporary Francophone intellectuals have not only recognized the contribution of their foreign associates, but they have also been actively participating in the international debate. Hence the decision to ask them to participate in the conference series in order to open a veritable transatlantic debate on the ethico-political stakes of multicultural societies. In a time when the question of the relationship between democracy and cultural pluralism imposes itself with growing urgency, it is necessary to nourish this debate in order to put current political thought to the test of cultural challenges from the outside.

Organizers
Gabriel Rockhill (gabriel_rockhill@yahoo.fr)
Alfredo Gomez-Muller (agomezmr@hotmail.com)

Program 2005-2006
February
Thursday 23 at 6:30 p.m., room 6, New York University in France
Michel Wieviorka, "Mémoire, histoire et nation"
Response Paper (in French): Hadi Rizk

March
Monday 13 at 6:30 p.m., Grand Amphithéâtre, Intitut Catholique
Judith Butler, "Violence, non-violence: Sartre et Fanon"
Response Paper (in French): Alfredo Gomez-Muller

April
Thursday 6 at 6:30 p.m., Grand Salon, American University of Paris
Chantal Mouffe, round table with Gabriel Rockhill and Yves Winter: "Radical Democracy and the 'New World Order'"

May
Monday 15 at 6:30 p.m., room 6, New York University in France
Seyla Benhabib, "The Claims of Culture: Equality and Diversity in Contemporary Europe"
Response Paper: Etienne Balibar

Tuesday 16 at 6:30 p.m., room 13, UNESCO (Annex)
Seyla Benhabib, round table with Richard Beardsworth, Valentine Moghadam and Gabriel Rockhill (moderator):
"Equality, Diversity and the Boundaries of Political Membership"

Addresses
American University of Paris
31, avenue Bosquet
75007 Paris

Institut Catholique
21, rue d'Assas
75006 Paris

Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris
27, rue Saint-Guillaume
75007 Paris

New York University in France (code : 1789)
56, rue de Passy (code : B9821)
75016 Paris

UNESCO (Annex)
1, rue Miollis (entrance via rue François Bonvin)
75732 Paris Cedex 15

Institutional Framework
New York University in France
Research Group Politics and Culture

Partner Institutions
American University of Paris / Institut Catholique de Paris
Dual-Language, Dual-Degree MA in International Relations, Conflict Resolution and Civil Society Development

Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales
Centre d'Analyse et d'Intervention Sociologiques (CADIS)

Institut Catholique de Paris
Laboratoire de recherches en philosophie pratique et anthropologie philosophique
Groupe interdisciplinaire de recherches en éthique

Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris
Centre Américain

UNESCO
Social and Human Sciences Sector, Gender Equality and Development Section

Participation
Open to the public.
Please confirm your participation by contacting New York University in France: 01.53.92.50.80 or nyu-in-france@nyu.edu

Last Updated 2/11/07