EXCLUSION AND REGULATED INCLUSION

Abstract

This article examines the ways in which the Sikh kirpan has been imagined and re-imagined by the Canadian state, as a signifier of exclusion from the public sphere, and regulated inclusion within the public sphere. The focus on Sikh cultural and religious practices provides a way to examine recent cases of an ethno-racial group that has long-tested and challenged the boundaries of multicultural accommodation in Canada. Through a critical race lens, I examine the 2006 Multani v. Commission scolaire Marguerite-Bourgeoys Supreme Court decision to permit kirpans in schools, and the 2011 ban of the kirpan by the Quebec legislature, in order to identify the function of kirpan debates for Canadian nation-building. In particular, I contend, kirpan debates in Canada serve to re-perform the myth of multiculturalism and the legitimacy of settler-colonialism, secure white hegemonies, and consolidate cultural and gender norms. To counter these hegemonies of power, I conclude by signaling a political praxis that can potentially complement the democratic impulse of inclusion while also countering the hegemonic effects of regulated inclusion, one that is grounded in a politics of disruption.