Race: Science's Last Taboo

Resources

Explore the concept of race and the impact it has on our society through a range of interviews, articles and videos. Please feel free to share and use the content we have provided.

If you are a teacher and your school/educational organisation has ERA membership, you can show any clips or full length programmes to your students found on this site. You can also use any other articles and content from here in the classroom.

ARTICLES

A Eurovision of Beauty?

Dr Amina Mire explores the growing skin whitening industry

Context: Is It Better To Be Mixed Race?

A comprehensive study of hybrid vigour and heterozygous advantage.

Context: How Racist Are You?

Jane Elliot’s demonstration, then and now.

Context: Human Zoo

The disturbing history of human zoos and their pseudo scientific origins.

Who Are You Calling A Racist?

Dominic Abrams explores the implications of calling someone ‘racist’.

Interpreting Science

Bill Amos helps us make sense of diverse research with reference to eugenics.

Let's Move On From Race

Should we focus on social equality instead of gene pools?

Q & A with Bill Amos

Professor of Evolutionary Genetics, Cambridge.

Q & A with Jim Wilson

Population geneticist, University of Edinburgh.

Q & A with Mark Shriver

Population geneticist, Morehouse College, Atlanta.

Power Without Oppression?

Is it possible to obtain power without oppressing people?

Race: A History

A history of the word and its place in science.

Race Fact List

A few quick pointers on race.

Races, Faces, Sex and Science by Katrina Voss

Science writer and former broadcast meteorologist Katrina Voss looks at why we don’t all look the same.

The New Language of Diversity

Kenan Malik considers why race is back on the modern social agenda?

Desperately Seeking Beauty by Martha Yankey

Journalist Martha Yankey explores the painful history that’s left many women of colour hating the way they look

CLIPS

Poverty and Underachievement

Interview with Oona King.

Racism or a Missmatch of Understanding?

Interview with Krishnan Guru-Murthy.

The acceptable face of blackness

Interview with Aarathi Prasad.

The Science of Underachievement

Interview with Rageh Omaar.

Race and IQ

Rageh Omaar investigates genetic science

Human Zoo

The phenomenon human zoos and story of Ota Benga

The Event: How Racist Are You?

Is Jane Elliot's demonstration valid in the UK in 2009?

Is It Better to Be Mixed Race

Why are so many mixed race people in prominent positions?

GLOSSARY

Not sure what something means? Use our glossary for definitions of specific terms used in this series.

SEE GLOSSARY

TIMELINE

The word ‘race’ was first used to refer to humans during the age of exploration, when Europeans discovered that the world was populated by different peoples. Have attitudes to race changed since then?