Multiculturalism Ain't All It's Cracked Up To Be

It appears that the diversity that so many of the politically correct bleeding heart leftists espouse as the end-all-and-be-all of existence does not solve the problems that they've been saying will be cured. In fact, diversity in neighborhoods has a negative net effect, with people living there becoming less active in their communities, being less likely to vote, less giving to charity, and less likely to contribute to a number of other civic activities, reports a recent Harvard study.

The study comes at a time when the future of the American melting pot is the focus of intense political debate, from immigration to race-based admissions to schools, and it poses challenges to advocates on all sides of the issues. The study is already being cited by some conservatives as proof of the harm large-scale immigration causes to the nation's social fabric.

The study is part of a fascinating new portrait of diversity emerging from recent scholarship. Diversity, it shows, makes us uncomfortable -- but discomfort, it turns out, isn't always a bad thing. Unease with differences helps explain why teams of engineers from different cultures may be ideally suited to solve a vexing problem. Culture clashes can produce a dynamic give-and-take, generating a solution that may have eluded a group of people with more similar backgrounds and approaches. At the same time, though, Putnam's work adds to a growing body of research indicating that more diverse populations seem to extend themselves less on behalf of collective needs and goals.

This puts a bit of a damper on the multiculturalists. Forcing diversity doesn't work. It never has. It never will.

(H/T Erik The Viking)