The word race refers to the categorization of humans into groups viewed as distinct. This categorization is based largely on physical characteristics, but can also include national affiliations and social categories like sex or sexual orientation. Scientifically, our understanding of the biological differences between people is advancing rapidly. However, the concept of race remains a powerful social construct that can be used in ways that are harmful to individuals and society as a whole.
Why does the idea of race persist? Many answers have been offered, including claims about how innate physical differences among humans are. Others are based on ideas about how a person should act and speak. Still other arguments center around how and why a particular group of humans grew to be advantaged and disadvantaged in the course of human history. In a conversation with Synergies editor Kathryn Stroppel, Camara Jones, MD, MPH, the college’s Bray Health Leadership Lecturer and nationally sought-after speaker, talked about these societal and medical realities and what she sees as our need to move beyond the concept of race.
Anthropologists have long recognized that the idea of race is a complex, subjective social construct, rather than a natural thing with objectively verifiable characteristics. Yet for many people, the idea of race is deeply rooted in personal and historical experience. As a result, it is difficult to dismantle, especially when it is reinforced by the actions of well-meaning people who mean no harm and simply want to live in a just world.
Some early Euro-American natural scientists did not question the reality of races; they simply reified them, treating the concepts as if they were actual things in nature. Carl Linnaeus, the father of modern taxonomy, was one such naturalist who created races that were seen as essential defining traits of humans. He classified Europeaus as white, sanguine and governed by law, while Asiaticus was yellow, melancholic and ruled by opinion.
These racial classifications were later used by European settlers to justify slavery, colonization, discrimination and war. In modern times, the notion of a biologically defined race has been challenged by advances in genetics and the reality of persistent socioeconomic disparities across racial categories. Some researchers have even called for the abandonment of the racial definitions altogether.
Despite the limitations of biologically defined races, some government agencies are still committed to using them for reporting purposes. The federal government maintains a system of racial classification that combines self-reporting with various other data sources to ensure accuracy. But this approach has its limits. Studies have shown that different measures of racial categories can paint very different pictures of inequality in America.
The current system of racial classification was developed to provide a minimum standard for maintaining, collecting and reporting information on the racial and ethnic categories that the U.S. Census Bureau uses for reporting and program administration purposes. The classifications are not to be interpreted as being biologically or anthropologically defined and should not be used for determining eligibility for participation in any federal programs. Nevertheless, people make assumptions and assessments about others’ racial identity all the time, and it is impossible to control how people are perceived by others in everyday life. This is why a new question on the 2020 Census asks respondents to choose a single racial identification and a separate box for those who are Hispanic or Latino.