Race is a socially constructed concept that emerged in the late 17th century as part of Europe’s Enlightenment, when philosophers and naturalists began to categorize the world and human beings anew, based on secular reasoning and scientific study. While many people today accept that the logical coherence of the concept of race has been substantially dismantled, others defend it at least as a useful term to describe how some individuals’ physical and cultural characteristics differ from those of other groups. Scholars devoted to the philosophical discussion of race have long emphasized that the distinctions referred to by the category “race” do not reflect biological differences, but rather sociological and political constructs of a very recent origin.
Although the concept of race evolved as a folk ideology to help explain differences associated with different populations brought together by European exploration and colonization, it became a powerful tool of oppression and discrimination. As racism has become increasingly rooted in American culture, the idea of race has been challenged by many scholars and anthropologists. Some have even argued that the notion of race is harmful and can lead to the false belief that some people are inferior, or that certain diseases are more prevalent in certain races than in others.
As a result, it is important to understand that the science and the theory of race are in constant flux. In the 21st century, genetic studies have demonstrated that human differences do not fit a model of distinct groups that accord with traditional racial categories. Instead, a person’s physical variations tend to overlap. Genetic analyses have also shown that there are no genes that distinguish humans into biologically distinct groups, and that genetic differences between geographically distant populations are only about 1 percent.
Nevertheless, some scholars still believe that it is possible to distinguish discrete and essentialist racial categories based on clusters of genetic material that can be identified. However, significant scholarly debate remains on whether or not reproductive isolation (either during evolutionary history or through modern practices that bar miscegenation) is sufficient to sustain such distinctions.
For that reason, GAO recommends that government agencies and private organizations use language that avoids a focus on racial stereotypes and myths. For example, when referring to people who do not identify as White, it is better to refer to them as “people of color” than to use the phrase “Black or African-American.” The term “person of color” reflects that there are many diverse groups of individuals who share a common experience and whose differences make up the larger fabric of the United States. GAO has also found that the term is more inclusive of racial identities than the racially specific terms used in some states.