Suchergebnisse

Race relations have become one of the most sensitive of international issues. They have been transformed from the domestic concern of single countries to a matter of world concern. The story of this transformation is almost too well-known for comment. It grew from a massive revulsion against fascist racialism, the decline of white dominance, the emergence of new states from colonial empires, and the growing dependence of developed countries on the raw materials of the less developed. The United Nations Organisation has, in addition, given the non-white majority a forum from which they can condemn countries maintaining racial stratification. It is clear, therefore, that a breakdown in racial prejudice would not only ease some world tensions, but is a desirable end in itself.

Theories of modernisation and social change have been increasingly challenged during the past decade by events in the Middle East and other areas of the developing world. Leaders of oil-rich nations are choosing to industrialise but not to westernise, and Islamic revivals are shaping new patterns of political and social development. For example, improvements in female status can no longer be regarded as the inevitable concomitants of industrialisation; to the contrary, gender inequality may actually be exacerbated by national resurgences of religious and cultural traditions which often accompany planned social change.1

A comparison of two Arab states, Algeria & Tunisia, which have adopted divergent official positions concerning modernization of the F role. Despite historical, cultural, & religious similarities, Tunisia's regime has vigorously undermined traditional Islamic constraints on F social participation, while Algeria's leadership has explicitly rejected the concept of reproductive control & has overtly reaffirmed Islamic traditions restricting women to a subordinate domestic role. These national differences are explained in terms of political exigencies that pressure the elite of Algeria to utilize the traditional status of women as an ideological referent. Three factors are identified that appear directly related to the degree of elite commitment to tradition: political instability, fragmentation within the elite, & ethnic revitalization. These political factors are, in turn, shaped by historical circumstances, eg, the nature of the colonial experience, which creates a unique set of parameters around the development process in new states. 2 Tables, 1 Figure. Modified AA.