Synopses & Reviews
When the head of the Human Genome Project and a former President of the United States both assure us that we are all, regardless of race, genetically 99.9% the same, the clear implication is that racial differences among us are superficial. The concept of race, many would argue, is an inadequate map of the physical reality of human variation. In short, human races are not biologically valid categories, and the very ideas of race and racial difference are morally suspect in that they support racism. In Race, Vincent Sarich and Frank Miele argue strongly against received academic wisdom, contending that human racial differences are both real and significant. Relying on the latest findings in nuclear, mitochondrial, and Y-chromosome DNA research, Sarich and Miele demonstrate that the recent origin of racial differences among modern humans provides powerful evidence of the significance, not the triviality, of those differences. They place the 99.9% the same figure in context by showing that racial differences in humans exceed the differences that separate subspecies or even species in such other primates as gorillas and chimpanzees. The authors conclude with the paradox that, while scientific honesty requires forthright recognition of racial differences, public policy should not recognize racial-group membership.
Synopsis
The conventional wisdom in contemporary social science claims that human races are not biologically valid categories. Many argue the very words '”race” and racial differences” should be abolished because they support racism. In Race, Vincent Sarich and Frank Miele challenge both these tenets. First, they cite the historical record, the art and literature of other civilizations and cultures, morphological studies, cognitive psychology, and the latest research in medical genetics, forensics, and the human genome to demonstrate that racial differences are not trivial, but very real. They conclude with the paradox that, while, scientific honesty requires forthright recognition of racial differences, public policy should not recognize racial-group membership. The evidence and issues raised in this book will be of critical interest to students of race in behavioral and political science, medicine, and law.
Synopsis
Contends that race is a biologically real phenomenon with important consequences, contrary to widespread and politically correct views that race doesn't matter - or doesn't even exist
About the Author
Vincent Sarichis Emeritus Professor of Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley.Frank Miele is senior editor with Skeptic magazine. Frank Mieleshighly regarded Skeptic interviews include conversations with evolutionists Richard Dawkins and E. O. Wilson, anthropologists Donald Johanson, Lionel Tiger, and Robin Fox, ecologist Garrett Hardin, and psychologist Robert Sternberg. His articles have appeared on many web pages, including those of the Human Behavior and Evolution Society. He lives in Sunnyvale, California, with his Great Dane, Payce