Every one is welcome to the Vaisakhi Parade in Surrey but that doesn't mean it's integrating or not foreign. You can integrate as much as you want but individual people will still be subject to their own life experiences. Experiencing a culture once or twice a year doesn't acclimate someone to it, it just reinforces that it is different and is something you experience on occasion.
You have to be pragmatic about these things--sure there are good coming from cultural festivals but they're at its core a festival. You may learn something but you're not going to break down someone's personal understanding of what exotic is.
Now with all this hearsay aside, is there a legit evidence exotic is a separator for I don't take scenarios in which it can be for it to be bad as it's evident you can do that with all descriptors. Is there intrinsic damage to the word like "faggot", "retard", etc. Those we can see the intrinsic damage it causes without mental gymnastics. It seems people are only taking offense to the word in certain situations but is that good enough to warrant a "you probably shouldn't use that word" response or is it more deserving to say, "isn't that bit of an over reaction"?
Well, I did not say the festivals are the complete package for integration, but it is a measure of one. I suppose, like I have alluded to, in my post, it is a mean to introduce so that integration can be paved for.
For example, I attended the Greek Week here in Melbourne because I thought the Greek culture would be closer to the mainstream Australian culture. I found that this is not thoroughly the case. They have very deep-set roots with regards to how they view family that is much closer to my Asian experience (i.e. their households can be quite large, with the grandparents living together with them). Now, I would not say that I am integrated into their culture just by attending. No, not at all. But I would say that I have gained more understanding of their culture and they are now no longer so 'different' than they once was,
to me.
To be honest, sketchbag, you were the one asking people why "exotic" are so bad
to them, you were the one asking people to justify "cultural festivals" to you, so I answer, and I could only answer based on my personal experience. But then reading your responses, you tend to stubbornly hold your original position why "exotic" is not that bad,
to you, and therefore dismiss the answer to a question that you yourself pose in a manner as if you really would like to learn why the other side feels that way. Well, each one of us can only bring our perspective into the discussion, and if you dismiss all the replies that says the things you don't want to hear, this discussion will not go very far.
Again, maybe I have to reiterate that I, personally, do not put too much weight on the word. If someone uses that word to address me, I'd probably laugh it off, and think that the person's probably not the most cultured person I've ever met. But it wouldn't have offended me.
