ABSTRACT: In most European countries, the culture of migrants is viewed as responsible for the problems of the societies. The event of September 11th followed by events in Europe strengthened the existing cultural categorical thinking and that in turn led to an increased feeling of insecurity and fear within these societies. This growing sense of fear of the culture of migrants and the urgent need for their assimilation has resulted in an increasing gap between migrants (even those born in the new society) and the rest of the society. If culture is presumed to be a problem, predicated on the idea of cultural contrasts, this may increasingly cause migrants, who feel insecure about their position within the Dutch society, to regroup within their ethnic boundaries in order to defend their culture. The emphasis on migrants' culture as the cause of isolation and/or criminality strengthens the feeling that the Dutch already have of migrants as 'the other' within society and increases the fear associated with migrant culture. Yet, the space for cultural recognition seems to be an essential precondition for individuals to feel secure enough to experiment with their culture and to initiate new connections with the diversity of cultures in them or with other cultures. The focus of this lecture is on the Dutch situation, portraying the societal context and some of the major players within that context. BIO: Halleh Ghorashi is Professor of Managing Diversity and Integration in the Department of Organization Sciences at the VU University Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She is the author of Ways to Survive, Battles to Win: Iranian Women Exiles in the Netherlands and the United States (Nova Science Publishers, 2003). One of her most recent publications is the co-edited book (with Haideh Moghissi) Muslim diaspora in the West: Negotiating Gender, Home and Belonging (Surrey, Ashgate 2010). She has published several articles on topics such as identity, diasporic positioning, cultural diversity, and emancipation issues both inside and outside organizations. As an active participant in the Dutch public debates on diversity and integration issues, she has received several awards. Her present research focus is on the narratives of identity and belonging of migrants, along with the processes of exclusion and inclusion in the context of growing culturalism.