Who Do We Think We Aren't: The Science and History of Race
Science and Technology • 35m
We haven’t always been preoccupied with ideas of race. But from the 19th c onward, bogus science has been used to legitimise social hierarchies and political policies, with consequences that have resounded across the world. From the father of eugenics Francis Galton to surprising figures such as Marie Stopes, an astonishing array of people have mistakenly intertwined genetics with rightful identity. And it is still happening today: identity politics have created a new kind of tribalism, one that relies on eugenics for evidence. Smashing through the myths surrounding ancestry, interrogating eugenic theory and exposing the prejudices and misconceptions that have underpinned so much of our scientific theory has never been more important. In this fascinating documentary, Adam Rutherford delivers a masterclass in why our preoccupation with the genetics of race is meaningless for scientists. Drawing on remarkable historical detail and new scientific proof, he shows that the evidence for prejudices and assumptions is almost entirely incorrect, and that the differences between us are only skin deep.
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