TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE! What do you know about race and ethnicity?

True or False? The concept of race is a social and cultural creation.... Race simply cannot be tested or proven scientifically

TRUE! Race is a socially defined concept that is used to categorize people according to their physical characteristics. Not one single gene or trait distinguishes all members of one “race” from all members of another

True or False? There is no difference between the terms “race” and “ethnicity”

FALSE ! While race refers to the categorization of people, ethnicity has to do with group identification and reflects the person's culture

True or False? People have always been classified into groups based on their looks

FALSE! Classifying people into groups has been around for hundreds of years. The idea of classifying people based on their looks, however, has not. As far back as 400 BC, ancient Greeks were classifying people based on purely cultural differences like language, religion, and customs. In 1680 AD, the idea of classification by appearance slowly began as lawmakers in the early colonies of North America began to use “white” as a classification of themselves rather than “Englishmen” or “Christians.” 1776 AD marks a turning point in the history of race: “Caucasian” was first used. One of the first hierarchies was created based on skin color, placing “whites” on top and four other “races” underneath. Superiority based on skin color soon became a widespread idea

True or False? Skin color tends to correlate with sunlight and latitude, not “race”

TRUE! “All skin colors, whether light or dark, are not due to race but to adaptation for life under the sun.”  -Alan Goodman, Biological Anthropologist Example: People in Southern India are actually as dark as many Africans

Something to remember… Beneath the skin, we are one of the most genetically similar of all species

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