плюрализм, толерантность, открытое общество, интеграция, мультикультурализм, дифференцированное гражданство, Social Sciences

The article is devoted to the topical in the modern globalization context problem of integration of cultural and ethnic minorities in European society. The crisis of the policy of multiculturalism noted by leading European politicians and sociologists as early as 2011, creating the need for a theoretical understanding of the causes of the phenomenon and the adequacy of earlier estimates of multiculturalism. Purpose – to analyze the origin and key provisions of pluralism and multiculturalism based on the works of contemporary Western political scientists and philosophers, in particular Giovanni Sartori, Italian and American political scientist and philosopher, one of the largest critic of multiculturalism. Methodology. The basic of research is the comparative historical and problem-chronological methods. Results. During the course of the study are revealed the reasons for the failure of multiculturalism, which ghettoises and closes off identities results in open society breakes down and subdivides into closed communities, endangering national identity. As an alternative it is suggested the idea of an open pluralistic society, which seeks to reduce and harmonizes differences, but without the goal of assimilation. Practical implications. The results of the study can be applied to develop methods to solve political problems, in particular the preservation of national identity, caused by the growth of the illegal immigration flows in Europe, and in further research work related to the study of contemporary trends in globalization and integration.