Chapter 1: Theories and practice Flashcards
What did Europeans and Americans do to justify that whites were superior to everybody else?
Social scientists, anthropologists, and scientists engaged in so-called scientific research and came up with theories about race. They used physical differences between people in a racist way to justify their view that whites were superior to everybody else
What is scientific racism
used science and scientific experiments to promote the idea that human beings can be divided into different racial and there was a hierarchy of races in which some racial groups could be graded as superior to others
Because these theories were subjective and based, not on scientific fact but on false arguments
What are pseudo-scientific racial theories
Because these theories were subjective and based, not on scientific fact but on false arguments and principles
Who was Johann Blumenbach
was a German scientist that divided humankind into five groups based on geographical areas where they lived which referred to them as races
Negro- Africa Mongolian- Asia Malay- Southeast Asia American Indian- The Americas Caucasian- Europe
Johann believed that the Caucasian group was the beautiful race and all the others were a degeneration from the originl type.
What were Johanns judgements on race based on
they were based on what he personally found beautiful, rather than on scientific facts and many people accepted his judgement as a fact
Humankind into five groups
Negro- Africa Mongolian- Asia Malay- Southeast Asia American Indian- the Americas Caucasians- Europe
Who was Samuel George Morton
investigated the question of physical differences between human groups. He believed that each group was created separately and with different abilities and he believed that intelligence was linked to brain size. He measured a large number of human skulls from all around the world. He found that the size of Caucasian skulls was bigger than the others and this led him to conclude that Caucasians were intellectually superior to Native Americans and African Americans
How did Mortons scientific finding influence people
that a powerful impact when they became public. His work shaped the thinking of politicians, journalists, and religious leaders of the time. He encouraged people to believe that racial differences existed and that some races were inferior to others. Because people were led to believe that his findings were based on scientific methods, they accepted that they were true
Who was Frederick Douglass
a former slave believed that scientific study was not necessarily neutral and objective
Who was Herbert Spencer
invented the philosophy known as Social Darwinism in which he adapted Charles Darwins recent and groundbreaking research braking research on evolution in the animal kingdom and applied it to human beings
What did Spencers Social Darwinism state
human beings were biologically superior to others and he believed that those who were fit were at the top of society, while the weak and unfit were at the bottom
it was therefore natural, normal, and proper for the strong to thrive at the expense of the weak
Survival of the fittest meaning
natural normal and proper for the strong to thrive at the expense of the weak
Consequences of the false teaching of Social Darwinism
would have terrible effects on international politics, economics, and social development across the globe
what did social Darwinists develop
a hierarchy of human society. white, wealthy, and powerful groups were at the top while the poor, the black people, and the Jews were at the bottom
Who did the ideal of Social Darwinists naturally appeal to
to the rich and powerful people in society, because they felt it explained and justified social inequalities
What did Social Darwinists support
the view that so-called white civilized industrial nations that had technologically advanced weapons had the moral right to conquer and civilise the savage blacks of the world. in this way, its supporters believed that superior societies would evolve culturally and politically and dominate the weak
What did Social Darwinism justify
imperialism, colonialism, racism, and poverty
What is Eugenics
is a word that means good in birth. it involves the belief that it is possible to improve the quality of human or animal species
What are positive Eugenics
meant encouraging people who were seen as having superior inheritable traits and above-average intelligence, to reproduce themselves.
What could be improved in positive eugenics
the human race could be improved
What does positive eugenics actually mean?
means adding to the human gene pool so-called desirable characteristics. And that immediately raises the question, desirable by whom?
Where did the theory of eugenics come from
it came from the ideas of social Darwinism and the belief that different groups in society could be put into stronger and weaker groups
Who was Francis Galton
was a leader of the eugenics movement. Supporters of eugenics thought that social problems like crime and poverty could be solved by getting rid of the inferior parts of the population
What did the eugenics movement concentrate on
differences between people and categorized them into “fit” and “unfit”. The idea was to create a perfect race of people by getting rid of those who were weak and unfit
problems of negative eugenics
involved discouraging reproduction by people with genetic defects, or who were considered inferior for some other reason. negative eugenics taught that if such people were allowed to reproduce, it would lead to racial degeneration
What did society in the 20th century promoted for unfit people
sterilization, abortion, and contraception ad encouraged the so-called superior and fit races to have many children
Who supported the negative eugenics
Nazi Germany
What did the Nazi do to people who were unfit
sterilised almost a quarter of a million people thought to be unfit for reasons of health and eventually murdered more than 70 000 people in german mental hospitals and they also murdered millions of people because of their religions or race
What is the reason that human beings don’t look the same
their ancestors lived and developed in different environments
What was the Human Genome Project
It is an international scientific research project to find all genes on every chromosome in the human body and to determine their biochemical nature
Who was Charles Davenport
A biologist that believed that intelligence and other human characteristics were inherited and were concerned that what he saw as feebleminded and inferior people would interfere and reduce the intelligence and productivity of the superior groups in America
Wha did Davenport support
the removal and separation of the weak and inferior people from the rest of society so that their genetic material would not contaminate the superior groups. This inferior group also included people of color
Race and eugenics in Australia
Britain began to colonise Australia. The Aboriginals who had always lived there were gradually driven off the land and away from the resources on which they depended. The relationship between the British and the Aboriginals quickly became hostile. As the British expanded further into Australian territory, there were serious attempts at extermination ever carried out in history
Race and eugenics in Namibia
Germany colonised Namibia, which was then called South-West Africa. The Germans encountered fierce resistance from the indigenous population
Samuel Herero was a leader of a large chiefdom of cattle farmers. After 20 years of colonial oppression, Herrero rose in the rebellion against the Germans in 1994. They attacked the German colonists, killing over a hundred of them The German troops in the territory were unable to crush the Herero uprising. The Herero managed to drive the Germans off their farms and regained control of their territory
Race and eugenics in SA
Apartheid literally means “apartness”. It was the inhuman policy designed to keep white South Africans apart from the rest of the population and to discriminate against black Africans. Apartheid was practiced in SA until 1994
