Multicultural society a failure?

In the beginning of this year our vice Prime Minister said that the multicultural society has failed. I wonder where he has been living his whole life. But let me tell you, it is not a failure in my town. Wé are not a failure vice Prime Minister.

I’m living in Rotterdam. The second biggest city in my country. Or maybe I’m wrong, but we like to think that we are. Half of the youth is non-western ‘ethnic’.  And you know what, we dont care. I heard this youngster screaming to his friend last week “Ewa sahbi, pass me een kip roti kardashhhhh!” (translation: “Hey my friend, give me a chicken roti, Surinamese dish, my frienddddd!”) I mean, that’s like Moroccan, English, Surinamese, Dutch and Turkish in 1 sentence. And the funny part is, all his mixed friends understood him. And so did I. Because besides the English, German and French we are obligated to learn in highschool, we also pick up words from people around us. We mix it all up. Like we are all mixed up. ‘Rotterdammers’ (residents of Rotterdam) are raw, they say what is on there mind and they do that very direct. And it doesn’t matter where you come from. If you act stupid, you are a stupid Rotterdammer. We like to complain about our city, but when we are outside it we will defend it with our lifes.  And it doesn’t matter if you’re from Morocco, Turkey, Suriname, Somalia or whatever, if you are a Rotterdammer, you are a Rotterdammer.

I must give credit to our education system, cause I can talk to my Thai neighbour in (sort of) English, German to my neighbour from Poland and some French to another neighbour from Congo . I don’t care if they don’t speak Dutch, I can talk to them in other languages. And I like to talk and learn from different cultures.  So I usely do that a lot.  And we talk Dutch too. Cause they want to talk Dutch with me so they can practize it. They are sweet and warm people. They also care for their street, their neighbourhood, their city, their country. They also care for their children, for safety, for their neighbours.  Who let’s us think they are second-class citizens?

The problem in The Netherlands in general is that for some adults ‘ethnics’ will always be ‘ethnic’ and it doesn’t matter if you were born and raised here. If you lived here for 40 years. If your children are born and raised here. If you speak the language fluently and you pay your taxes every month. If you participate in Dutch celibrations (like Queensday) and obey the rules of this country. They will still be seen as ‘ethnics’.  And as long as we all don’t accept ‘ethnics’ as Dutch civilians, this will never change. I’m proud of my city and I think it is a good rolemodel for the cities who are not that far. Who maybe never have been multicultural because their are not much ‘ethnics’ living there. In Rotterdam their are daily a lot of people from outside the city. I notice cause they are the ones who threat me different. I’m not ‘ethnic’, but anyone with a veil is ‘ethnic’ in most Dutch eyes.  So I know how some can act. But yet, I still think we didn’t fail (yes, we fall sometimes) and a vice Prime Minister telling us we failed is not very helpful.  What kind of message are you sending to our youth then? Our youth who mostly don’t care where someone is born or where their parents are born. Our youth who is used having their group of friends mixed. Our youth who cares about the character of a person instead of their ethnicity. I think vice Prime Minister, that you’ve failed in realising that this generation of youth doesn’t care if someone is ‘ethnic’. And you have failed in giving them credit for that.

Note: This is only based on my personal opinion. You may disagree. But this is how I see it.