BL4214. The Science of Race and Racism
School: Biology Semester: 2 Credits: 15
Module duration: 11 weeks. Weekly contact: 2-hour seminars, plus office hours.
Assessment: 100% coursework. Prerequisites: None.
The aim of this module is to understand how scientific theory has been used to support the concept of race and justify racism, and how legitimate contemporary genetic analyses undermine racial arguments. It will cover the genetics of human diversity, including those phenotypes (e.g., skin colour, facial features) commonly deployed to categorize individuals into racialized groups, drawing attention to their arbitrariness and unrepresentativeness. It will discuss the history of scientific racism, from its emergence in the Enlightenment and during European colonialism up to the present, with particular focus on theories of eugenics. It will then consider the topics of (a) race and health, (b) race and sporting performance, and (c) race and intelligence, before exploring what biologists and biology students can do to promote public understanding of these issues, and push an antiracist agenda. It comprises a mix of lectures, group discussion and student presentations.
Teaching staff
Prof. Kevin Lala
Dr. Jasmeen Kanwal
Kalyani Twyman
Intended learning outcomes:
By the end of the module, you will be able to
- demonstrate knowledge of the topics of race and racism.
- understand the core concepts of this field and engage with key controversies.
- describe and critically evaluate scientific research claiming to provide evidence of racial differences.
- construct a coherent, logical argument supported by empirical findings.
Content
Week 1: Introduction.
Week 2: The History of Scientific Racism.
Week 3: Genetics and Race.
Week 4: Race and Health.
Week 5: Race and Sport.
Week 6: Race and Intelligence.
Week 7: Inheritance, Ancestry and Identity
Week 8: Prejudice, Xenophobia and Racism
Week 9: Science and Social responsibility
Reading material
Graves JL & Goodman AH. 2021. Racism Not Race. Answers to Frequently Asked Questions. Columbia University Press. Electronic access is provided via the library.
Further reading in the form of relevant articles is also provided.
Want to access our teaching materials?
Are you an academic at another university or department, who would like to teach a similar course, or give lectures on one or more of the above topics, to your students? We want to encourage others to teach this subject and are happy to share our teaching resources, including lecture slides, course handbook, and reading materials. We will also gladly share advice and experiences. For further information and access to a package of teaching materials contact Kevin Lala ([email protected]).