Challenges to Individuality Faced in Modern Culture

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The oppression of individuals transcends throughout many historical eras. Many instances occur because of the misuse of power, which compromises an individual’s integrity. It is the wishful thinking of society that individuals are educated about oppression to avoid more of these incidents, yet many countries still face racial and cultural barriers. In the essay “The Metropolis and Mental Life”, Georg Simmel states, “the deepest problems of modern life flow from the attempt of the individual to maintain the independence and individuality of his existence against the sovereign powers of society, against the weight of the historical heritage and the external culture and technique of life.” (Simmel, The Metropolis and Mental Life p. 316). Simmel’s ideology portrays culture’s ability to oppress individuals due to the effects of social norms and the abuse of power. This can be exemplified in the Aboriginal and European segregation in Canadian history resulting in residential schools. It can also be discussed through the “textbook Indians” stereotype that has been taught in institutions for many years. This phenomenon exists within numerous countries, where oppression and racist attitudes are a key attribute in each country’s history. Sadly, after all of these historical events, cultural oppression continues to be a problem even with the enactment of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Simple cultural differences of how are examples of cultural barriers causing numerous controversies within society. Although there has been some retribution, these people still face tyranny. The problem with re-stating history is that each person sets a bias upon the information they present. For example, in the R v. Keegstra case, James Keegstra was a teacher charged for spreading hate propaganda towards the Jewish people involved in the his students to Holocaust. He influenced

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