Justifying Multiculturalism: Social Justice, Diversity and National Identity in Australia and New Zealand
Multiculturalism has been criticised for emphasising cultural recognition over resource redistribution for minority cultural and ethnic groups. Moreover, critics argue that cultural diversity fails to provide enough common ground upon which to sustain civic nationalism. This paper examines the development of multiculturalist and biculturalist policies in Australia and New Zealand, and argues that these have in fact been justified in terms of a negotiated balance between two civic values: the value of diverse cultural expression, and social justice understood in egalitarian terms. The tension between these values has shaped the debate around multiculturalism in both cases. Both the social justice and value of cultural diversity arguments are deployed to reinforce conceptions of national identity in Australia and New Zealand.
Pākehā Women and Māori Protocol: The Politics of Criticising Other Cultures
Feminists have fiercely debated whether it is wrong for outsiders to criticise gendered customs and practices identified with cultural minorities. This article explores the ethics of criticising other cultures by analysing the reaction to public criticism of Māori ceremonial protocol by two Pākehā women. It argues that the response to outsiders' criticism does not depend in a simple and direct way on whether insiders have resisted the criticised practice. There is a history of Māori women formulating critiques of the gender roles in Māori ceremonies, but the public response from Māori women to the Pākehā women's criticism was overwhelmingly negative. The outsiders' criticism was understood as an attack on the incorporation of Māori cultural expression into the public sector, rather than as a gesture of support or solidarity.
Effects of the mineral phase and valence of vanadium on vanadium extraction from stone coal
The influence of roasting on the leaching rate and valence of vanadium was evaluated during vanadium extraction from stone coal. Vanadium in stone coal is hard to be leached and the leaching rate is less than 10% when the raw ore is leached by 4 mol/L H2SO4 at 90°C for 2 h. After the sample is roasted at 900°C for 2 h, the leaching rate of vanadium reaches the maximum, and more than 70% of vanadium can be leached. The crystal of vanadium-bearing mica minerals decomposes and the content of V(V) increases with the rise of roasting temperature from 600 to 900°C, therefore the leaching rate of vanadium increases significantly with the decomposition of the mica minerals. Some new phases, anorthite for example, form when the roasting temperature reaches 1000°C. A part of vanadium may be enwrapped in the sintered materials and newly formed phases, which may impede the oxidation of low valent vanadium and make the leaching rate of vanadium drop dramatically. The leaching rate of vanadium is not only determined by the valence state of vanadium but also controlled by the decomposition of vanadium-bearing minerals and the existence state of vanadium to a large extent.