Authors

Kim Keay

Senior Project Advisor

Merrill Peterson

Document Type

Project

Publication Date

Spring 2022

Keywords

scientific racism, race, biology, evolution, white supremacy, race science, eugenics, Social Darwinism, sterilization, racism

Abstract

A dissection of the origins, history, persistence, and impacts of various threads of scientific racism. This paper traces scientific racism from its roots in evolutionary biology through Social Darwinism and eugenics. By exploring the historical connection between scientific racism and white supremacy, this research aims to reveal some of the ways in which contemporary science, racism, and society at large have been shaped by the past. Tracing these threads will follow scientific racism from its origins to the beginnings of Social Darwinism and eugenics, through American cultivation of eugenics and its connections to Nazi Germany, to ongoing eugenicist policies and white supremacist terrorism in our modern world.

Subjects - Topical (LCSH)

Scientific racism; Social Darwinism; Eugenics; Involuntary sterilization

Genre/Form

essays

Type

Text

Rights

Copying of this document in whole or in part is allowable only for scholarly purposes. It is understood, however, that any copying or publication of this document for commercial purposes, or for financial gain, shall not be allowed without the author’s written permission.

Language

English

Format

application/pdf

Included in

Biology Commons

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