The beginning of the answer

A good beginning to the process of exploring the answer to what is multiculturalism would be to say that it is much more than being aware and respectful of other cultures around us. Being culturally aware/sensitive is a great way to broaden one's world views and opinions. As humans we owe ourselves at least the minimum of learning how to approach different cultures with interest and curiosity. Approaching those different than use with interest and hopeful curiosity would help us moderate a common problem of dominant cultures throughout history, a sense of superiority that can easily denigrate to uncontrolled arrogance. Unchecked arrogance has been an influential and contributing factor on the demise of nearly all great cultures in the history of humanity. The influence arrogance has had in hurting great cultures is partly due to the problem that it tends to foster complacency, apathy towards those different than "us". The resulting problem is that the more we believe in our superiority the easier it becomes to dismiss the "other" and their culture. It is in this state that the practice of "awareness" becomes very appealing, it is a great way to feel like one is contributing while avoiding all the pesky stuff such as actually living with a different culture. However, awareness is not all bad, it can be the beginning of an amazing journey that can enrich anyone's life in more ways than can be imagined.