Suggested Readings

Chapter 13: Modern Human Diversity

Cohen, M. N. (1998). Culture of Intolerance: Chauvinism, class and racism in the United States. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

This very readable book was written to counter political propaganda claiming that science affirms the need to shape the political order on the basis of inherent inequality and mutual disdain. In it, Cohen summarizes what scientific data really say about biological differences among humans; explores the depth, power, beauty, and potential value of cultural differences; shows how the cultural blinders of U.S. culture cause people in this country to misunderstand others as well as themselves; and looks at questionable assumptions in U.S. culture that promote intolerance and generate problems where none need exist.

Gould, S. J. (1996). The Mismeasure of Man (2nd ed.). New York: Norton.

This is an updating of a classic critique of supposedly scientific studies that attempt to rank all people on a linear scale of intrinsic and unalterable mental worth. The revision was prompted by what Gould refers to as the “latest cyclic episode of biodeterminism” represented by the publication of the widely discussed book, The Bell Curve.

Graves, J. L. (2001). The Emperor’s New Clothes: Biological theories of race at the millennium. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.

Graves is a laboratory geneticist as well as an African American intellectual whose goal is to show the reader that there is no biological basis for separation of human beings into races and that the idea of race is a relatively recent social and political construction. His grasp of science is solid and up-to-date, and readers can benefit from the case he presents.

Jacoby, R., & Glauberman, N. (Eds.). (1995). The Bell Curve Debate. New York: Random House.

This is a collection of articles by a wide variety of authors including biologists, anthropologists, psychologists, mathematicians, essayists, and others critically examining the claims and issues raised in the widely read and much discussed book, The Bell Curve. Included are pieces written to address many of the same issues as they were raised by earlier writers. For anyone who hopes to understand the race and intelligence debate, this book is a must.

Marks, J. (1995). Human biodiversity: Genes, race and history. Hawthorne, NY: Aldine de Gruyter.

In this book, Marks shows how genetics has undermined the fundamental assumptions of racial taxonomy. In addition to its presentation of the nature of human biodiversity, the book also deals with the history of cultural attitudes toward “race” and diversity.