Science For Segregation

View the Table of Contents . Read Chapter 1 . "This book asks if science can be divorced from politics. . . . Recommended." --Choice ocirc;A fascinating and comprehensive look at a largely neglected aspect of American history--the role of science and scientists in supporting and sustaining white racist thought and institutions during the battle over de-segregation. And like most good social history, it does not require much strain to draw the relevance to today's debates about the salience of biological taxonomies of race.ouml; --Troy Duster, author ofBackdoor to Eugenics ocirc;A very important book that explores the fuzzy zone between science and pseudo-science, exposing the political action of right-wing scientists in the 1950s and 1960s who argued for school segregation on ostensibly scientific grounds. The role of science as an authority in society has never been more evident than in the work and rhetoric of these zealously racist scholars. This well-researched book is a must-read for anyone interested in modern debates over the study of human diversity or the role of science in contemporary society.ouml; --Jonathan Marks, author ofWhat It Means to Be 98% Chimpanzee: Apes, People, and Their Genes ocirc;A deeply-researched, fascinating, and judicious assessment of the aelig;scientific' arguments that were marshaled against the Supreme Court's landmark school desegregation decision. Jackson has made a contribution that will endure.ouml; --Raymond Wolters,author ofDu Bois and His Rivals In this fascinating examination of the intriguing but understudied period following the landmarkBrown v. Board of Educationdecision, John Jackson examines the scientific case aimed at dismantling the legislation. Offering a trenchant assessment of the so-called scientific evidence, Jackson focuses on the 1959 formation of the International Society for the Advancement of Ethnology and Eugenics (IAAEE), whose expressed function was to objectively investigate racial differences and publicize their findings. Notable figures included Carleton Putnam, Wesley Critz George, and Carleton Coon. In an attempt to link race, eugenics and intelligence, they launched legal challenges to the Brown ruling, each chronicled here, that went to trial but ultimately failed. The history Jackson presents speaks volumes about the legacy of racism, as we can see similar arguments alive and well today in such books asThe Bell Curveand in other debates on race, science, and intelligence. With meticulous research and a nuanced understanding of the complexities of race and law, Jackson tells a disturbing tale about race in America.

Hn P. Jackson Jr. is Assistant Professor of Communication at the University of Colorado