"When you begin to understand the biology of human variation, you have to ask yourself if race is a good way to describe that"--- Janis Hutchinson, Biological Anthropologist
Hutchinson's argument of how race should ultimately not be a way to describe the evolutionary and biological differences we each exhibit, makes me think again of how "race" seems to be another term that allows us to label those individuals who look different from and don't necessarily fit into the rest of society. Furthermore, identification and classification by race seem to further emphasize whether or not certain individuals are either "a part" of society or "apart" from society.
In anthropology class, my professors often discuss how certain individuals are exiled or "othered" within their societies because of the apparent differences they express as a result of their illnesses, disabilities, or even non-white racial backgrounds. However, if even the supposedly white elite men of society experience a form of discrimination and "othering"- as seen in Yongsoo Park's Boy Genius- on their own, then are the white people of society necessarily the ones solely dictating and defining what societal ideals should exist for that particular society? Who then defines which races should exist and be dominant within a society?
Why, as a society, must we have definitions, labels, and categorizations for those that appear different? After all, aren't we all biologically connected and thus similar in some molecular, biological way? If we are all stripped down to the basis of DNA, we find that we are all made up of the same things---adenine, guanine, cytosine and thymine; that in our molecular roots we're not so different at all.
So what actually accounts for all the disparities, wars, and constant discrimination associated with the differences in the color of skin? Even if my skin is tan; hers may be white; and his may be black, we're still the same. "Race"- by definition- and within the context of "racial discrimination" that it is usually associated with is a sad reality of society's desperation to essentially force us to assimilate and let go of our racial uniqueness that authors, such as Lyrics Born, tell us to celebrate. Furthermore, race, as Hutchinson explains, doesn't explain the origins of our differences. So the next time you feel different because you're African American or Chinese and don't look like the stereotypical image of a white person, don't blame your race. Blame evolutionary biology.
-Abigail Huliganga
Hutchinson's argument of how race should ultimately not be a way to describe the evolutionary and biological differences we each exhibit, makes me think again of how "race" seems to be another term that allows us to label those individuals who look different from and don't necessarily fit into the rest of society. Furthermore, identification and classification by race seem to further emphasize whether or not certain individuals are either "a part" of society or "apart" from society.
In anthropology class, my professors often discuss how certain individuals are exiled or "othered" within their societies because of the apparent differences they express as a result of their illnesses, disabilities, or even non-white racial backgrounds. However, if even the supposedly white elite men of society experience a form of discrimination and "othering"- as seen in Yongsoo Park's Boy Genius- on their own, then are the white people of society necessarily the ones solely dictating and defining what societal ideals should exist for that particular society? Who then defines which races should exist and be dominant within a society?
Why, as a society, must we have definitions, labels, and categorizations for those that appear different? After all, aren't we all biologically connected and thus similar in some molecular, biological way? If we are all stripped down to the basis of DNA, we find that we are all made up of the same things---adenine, guanine, cytosine and thymine; that in our molecular roots we're not so different at all.
So what actually accounts for all the disparities, wars, and constant discrimination associated with the differences in the color of skin? Even if my skin is tan; hers may be white; and his may be black, we're still the same. "Race"- by definition- and within the context of "racial discrimination" that it is usually associated with is a sad reality of society's desperation to essentially force us to assimilate and let go of our racial uniqueness that authors, such as Lyrics Born, tell us to celebrate. Furthermore, race, as Hutchinson explains, doesn't explain the origins of our differences. So the next time you feel different because you're African American or Chinese and don't look like the stereotypical image of a white person, don't blame your race. Blame evolutionary biology.
-Abigail Huliganga
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