A ReDirection of Thought
A Site for Discussion
What
is race?
The complexity of the debate over differences between "races"
is compounded by the difficulty in the problematic task of defining the
very term "race." Many social scientists, anthropologists, and
biologists argue that "race" does not even exist and that it is
merely a social construct. A working definition of race should be two-fold,
with both social and biological influences. It cannot be either social or
biological, for their interplay and influence cannot be separated. "Race"
can be seen as a sociopolitical term used to classify people on the basis
of their cultural, behavioral, and geographic ancestry; yet "race"
can also be defined as a group of people sharing similar traits (adaptations)
that were specialized to the natural pressures of their ancestral environment.
This latter "biological" definition of race depends not only upon
ones genes, but significantly also upon social and environmental contexts
that influences its expression. AMC
This
main page is a conglomeration of student efforts to present ideas, arguments,
data, perspectives, and further links for exploration. It has been developed
by concerned students at Emory University, attempting to provide a main
page for the central arguments defining the discussion over race and gender
differences, particularly in the arena of intelligence testing and ranking.
More than anything, we would like to emphasize the importance of quality
education and equal opportunity.
Throughout the Emory University 2001 Reconciliation Symposium, our Neuroscience
and Behavioral Biology Seminar "The Mismeasure of Woman/The Mismeasure
of Man," and the Biology class "The Science of Race, a Molecular
Biology Approach," we have encountered a disturbing trend of thought.
Numerous "scientific" endeavors have sought to prove an immutable,
causal relationship between genes and intelligence, conspicuously lacking
consideration of environmental factors.
Site deisgned and written, and artwork drawn, by: Ashley M. Cimino
