If you were born in Mexico, grew up in the U.S., work in Paris and marry a Swede, who are your children, exactly?
The global economy is a community of hybrids. Mixed marriages and cultural juxtapositions of all kinds are becoming the norm. On a planet with 5,000 or so ethnic groups and 600 living languages, the possibilities for mixing are literally endless, as are the ancient barriers.
Children of these radical combinations grow up multilingual and multicultural. And they come of age in an interconnected world, in which the old notions of identity are dissolving. If you’re among the mongrels, Gregg Zachary says: count yourself lucky. He says the new global economy actually favors people and nations that can work with hybridity.
So what if the New Cosmopolitans face some confusion and alienation? Zachary says: they have roots as well as wings.
(Hosted by Christopher Lydon)
Guests:
Gregg Zachary