Law, Multiculturalism and Intercultural Human Rights
- Course Code:
- 155200040
- Status:
- Course Not Running 2013/2014
- Unit value:
- 1
- Year of study:
- Year 3
- Taught in:
- Full Year
This course is not running in 2013/14
This course focuses on an interdisciplinary socio-legal study of the interactions of English law and various ethnic minorities who import their own cultures. Initial conceptual and theoretical sessions on migration history, assimilation/integration, legal pluralism, ethnicity and race relations theory provide detailed foundations for deeper analysis of all topics studied in the course. The family law part analyses how core elements of domestic family law struggle with the super-diverse presence of ethnic minority communities following various unofficial concepts of managing family relations. Intercultural conflicts concerning marriage, divorce, nullity and financial arrangements are covered.
The second term examines a wide range of public law issues, mainly race relations/equality law and employment, race and crime, racial harassment, education law, blasphemy, and some aspects of immigration law.
Objectives and learning outcomes of the course
On successful completion of the course, you will have achieved and/or acquired:
- Sound knowledge and understanding in theory and practice of how ethnic minority presence and the official claims of the formal national law interact, to what extent they may clash, and what possibilities there are for managing the competing claims through legal processes.
- A solid understanding of the socio-legal theories underpinning this area of study with its contested arenas of official law and unofficial law.
- Skilful and sensitive methods to approach handling diversity in the law, which forms an important transferable key skill in today's multicultural work environment.
- A deeper understanding of the complexities of the issues presented and of the potential for achieving reforms or policy changes in certain selected areas of the law, some of which you may choose for specialisation.
- An advanced level of analytical skills in relation to primary and secondary legal and socio-cultural material, often as it relates to a particular ethnic group, sometimes involving specific issues in law and policy.
- Advanced levels of oral presentation, report writing and research skills.
Scope and syllabus
This third year course focuses on an interdisciplinary, mainly socio-legal study of ethnic minorities in the UK, building on the analysis of comparative and English law subjects that most students will have pursued in years 1 and 2 of their degree. The course concentrates on how various forms of interaction between ethnic minorities and the English legal system have developed over time and are developing at present.
A general conceptual and theoretical introduction to this field of study provides detailed foundations for deeper analysis of topics studied in the later parts of the course. Starting with a history of migration to the UK, the conceptual framework comprises mainly analysis of assimilation/integration, legal pluralism, ethnicity and race relations theory.
The family law part considers in detail how certain core elements of domestic English family law struggle with the partly significant presence of ethnic minority communities who may be following their own customary and hence unofficial concepts of managing family relations. These topics include various issues concerning marriage, divorce, and nullity.
The second term is dedicated to the detailed analysis of a wide range of public law issues, comprising mainly race relations and employment law, issues around race and crime, education law, blasphemy, and certain aspects of immigration law.
The course has been growing organically as new legal issues have arisen over the past 20 years. Students may come from a variety of Departments and bring very different interests to this series of intensive seminars.
Method of assessment
Assessment weighting: 80% unseen examination, 20% coursework (two written assignments of 2500 words each)Suggested reading
- Ballard, Roger (ed.) (1994, now 2007) Desh pardesh. The South Asian presence in Britain. London: Hurst & Co.
- Hamilton, Carolyn (1995) Family, law and religion. London: Sweet & Maxwell.
- Jones, Richard and G. Welhengama (2000) Ethnic minorities in English law. Stoke-on-Trent: Trentham Books.
- Parekh, Bhikhu (2000) The future of multi-ethnic Britain. [Report of the Runnymede Trust Commission on the Future of Multi-ethnic Britain]. London: Profile.
- Poulter, Sebastian M. (1986) English law and ethnic minority customs. London: Butterworths.
- Poulter, Sebastian (1998) Ethnicity, law and human rights. The English experience. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
- Shah, Prakash (2005) Legal pluralism in conflict: Coping with cultural diversity in law. London: Glass House/Cavendish.
- Shah, Prakash (ed.) (2007) Law and ethnic plurality. Socio-legal perspectives. Leiden and Boston: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.
- Shah, Prakash and Werner Menski (eds.) (2006) Migration, diasporas and legal systems in Europe. London: Cavendish.
- Visram, Rozina (2002) Asians in Britain. 400 years of history. London et al.: Pluto Press.
