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The American Anthropological Association RACE project

Article:

CHANGING STUDENTS’ UNDERSTANDING OF RACE
Donna Hart, Ph.D.
Professor of Anthropology
University of Missouri – St Louis
St. Louis, MO 63121
Pamela Ashmore, Ph.D.
Professor of Anthropology and
Associate Director for the Center for Human Origin and Cultural Diversity
University of Missouri – St Louis
St. Louis, MO 63121

"Race as a social construct cannot be merged with scientific data about
human variation. Our aim is to create awareness that these are two different
factors, hoping that the science provides students with a means to objectively
evaluate social, economic and political issues pertaining to human variation.
This may be one of the most effective educational tools to combat racism"

Hart_Ashmore




SAYING “SOCIALLY CONSTRUCTED” IS NOT ENOUGH
John Hartigan, Jr., Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Anthropology
University of Texas - Austin
Austin, TX 78712

"The starting point for most anthropologists who critically engage general
assumptions about race is that it is socially constructed. This basic stance, which
grounds much of our teaching and research, is now imperiled. In the course of
the last year, a variety of public, scientifically-authoritative assaults have been
made on this notion. As well, the consensus among geneticists that there is no
substantive basis linking genes and race is showing signs of fracturing. As a
result, we quickly need to reassess our argument that race is “socially
constructed.” The good news is, though, that out of such a reassessment we
may yet find a more effective means of examining the continuing cultural
significance of race."

Hartigan





RACE AND BIOLOGY: CHANGING CURRENTS IN MUDDY WATERS
Francis E. Johnston
Professor Emeritus of Anthropology
Department of Anthropology
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104

"The 1992 meeting of the American Academy of Higher Education, held in
Phoenix, had as its theme “The Engaged Scholar.” Implicit within that theme and explicit in the lectures, presentations, and workshops was the message that our scholarship does not exist in an ivory tower, or a ny other type of vacuum. Our work is part of a larger whole that extends across disciplines and throughout history, as well as prehistory. Race is a complex term. On balance it is a socially and culturally-constructed one applied to social issues of great human significance. But race has a biological basis as well, perhaps scientifically important only in taxonomy, but of enormous importance in its cultural construction. We must keep the relationships between the two constructs clear, visible, and based on sound knowledge."

Johnston