What is the connection between inclusion, exclusion, and identity? In British Multiculturalism and the Politics of Representation, Dr Lasse Thomassen argue that the politics of inclusion and identity should be studied as struggles over the representations of the identities involved. The argument is developed through analyses of cases from the last four decades of British multiculturalism, including Gordon Brown’s and David Cameron’s different versions of Britishness, legal cases about religious symbols and clothing in schools, public debates about the role of religion in British society, and a novel by Nick Hornby. Thomassen will illustrate the argument of the book with the case of the head of Ofsted, Amanda Spielman’s comments about banning the hijab in schools and the sexualisation of school girls.
Chaired by Heidi Safia Mirza.
