Race just another Social construct ?

[Absolute Zero]

Is race another social construct developed by man to bring about diffrence and or seperation between himself to feel superior ? As you all proablly know by now I am a being who is against the concept of there being race since in my belief it would bring about sterotypical ******** from people like oh blacke people are stupid or have sex with apes in Africa or some polsturting bull like that etc. Yes I know that such things are said still in this world and it is not just blacks but other minorites in general that get made fun etc. So I was wondering if there was any scientfic evidence that would seprate us by genitics to the point that any of this stuff could be given creedense too ?

 

[horizon]

I think a better question is why should it matter? People who are inclined to treat others poorly based on some perceived superiority hardly need some scientific proof to back them up.

 

[Absolute Zero]

You do have a point. I made a thread a while ago which dwelved on a topic not to diffrent than this and I think you would fine the read intreasting.Here it is ''I'm not naive or anything and I know that some people will come to certain ways of thinking from being brought up by rascist parents or the like.Yet in the past couple of years I have met people who have stated that I am unintellgent even though I was not given time to explain my situation wich includes a premature birth and scarring of the brain.On top of that I am African american and in a junior class of mine in High school called Ap economics I had to basically answer a question about cities with in a set area and what the prime city was or something to that effect. I was going to answer that but becaues of low confidance I didnt feel like answering until finally this girl said the answer that i didnt say.Before that however this *** basically stated out lowed that black people are dumb and all this other ****.It really ****** me of and it had me wonder why the **** do we as a socity no specias put up with **** like this ?''

 

[Wirey]

Is race another social construct developed by man to bring about diffrence and or seperation between himself to feel superior ? As you all proablly know by now I am a being who is against the concept of there being race since in my belief it would bring about sterotypical ******** from people like oh blacke people are stupid or have sex with apes in Africa or some polsturting bull like that etc. Yes I know that such things are said still in this world and it is not just blacks but other minorites in general that get made fun etc. So I was wondering if there was any scientfic evidence that would seprate us by genitics to the point that any of this stuff could be given creedense too ?

This is why I think we should outlaw white people.

 

[George-ananda]

I don't get a few things about the OP.
What term should be used to distinguish the native peoples of Europe, Africa, East Asia, Australia, etc..

Let's say someone from the other side of the world comes to America and innocently asks the question, 'Why are the basketball players mostly black?' . What would your response be?

I think most all people agree hatred and discriminatory behavior based on ethnicity is wrong. But there is nothing really wrong with discussing differences and similarities between ethnic groups.

Peace.

 

[horizon]

Let's say someone from the other side of the world comes to America and innocently asks the question, 'Why are the basketball players mostly black?' . What would your response be?

That the color of their skin has nothing do with anything, and their talent as a basketball player has everything to do with their being on the team.

 

[George-ananda]

That the color of their skin has nothing do with anything, and their talent as a basketball player has everything to do with their being on the team.

What you said above is true. BUT, you avoided the question of WHY, this is the case.

 

[horizon]

What you said above is true. BUT, you avoided the question of WHY, this is the case.

Because they practice and work hard at their craft, mental discipline also has a lot to do with it.

 

[George-ananda]

Because they practice and work hard at their craft, mental discipline also has a lot to do with it.

So you're saying blacks work harder than whites, asians, etc. at their craft?

So you're saying blacks have superior mental discipline than whites, asians??

 

[horizon]

I’m saying that people, regardless of their skin color, who participate in competitive sports are people who work hard at what they do and probably have a high degree of mental discipline.

 

[George-ananda]

I’m saying that people, regardless of their skin color, who participate in competitive sports are people who work hard at what they do and probably have a high degree of mental discipline.

I'll agree with your above statement

But you've still avoided the WHY question.

 

[horizon]

But you've still avoided the WHY question.

No, I didn't.

 

[George-ananda]

No, I didn't.

Then you don't understand the question you never answered. Sorry.

 

[horizon]

I understood the question, and gave you my personal opinion on it.

 

[Drolefille]

Is race a social construct?
Yes. Some sort of categorization by skin tone doesn't make much sense when a "white" Hispanic and a "white" Swede have little genetically or culturally in common.
Does that make it any less real as a phenomenon?
No. Social constructs are incredibly powerful. As you noticed when a class mate was being a racist dick and said that "black people are dumb." It's called a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Why are there many black people playing basketball?
A lot has to do with socioeconomic factors that mean that young black kids are playing basketball incredibly frequently growing up, and see sports as the only opportunity to get out of poverty. So while high school teams are more diverse - ish, still depends on the school - college teams recruit the best, the people who've worked the hardest and intend to go to college to play ball.

It's not as simple as that, but it's also not some bunk about one race being better athletes than another.

 

[Alceste]

Then you don't understand the question you never answered. Sorry.

Are you actually trying to make the case that black people are genetically predisposed to being better basketball players?

They're not. The answer to your question is that they practice and work hard to be good at basketball, from a very young age. Similarly, east coast Canadians are often incredible fiddle players. They have fiddles stuck into their hands when they are three or four, and play all the time, for their entire lives. That is why they are better fiddle players, in general, than West coast Canadians, who typically start much later in life and practice less.

 

[George-ananda]

Are you actually trying to make the case that black people are genetically predisposed to being better basketball players?

They're not. The answer to your question is that they practice and work hard to be good at basketball, from a very young age. Similarly, east coast Canadians are often incredible fiddle players. They have fiddles stuck into their hands when they are three or four, and play all the time, for their entire lives. That is why they are better fiddle players, in general, than West coast Canadians, who typically start much later in life and practice less.

Yes I'm making the case that black people are genetically predisposed to being better basketball players. Anyone that could possibly disagree, I believe, is blinded by an emotional prejudice.

let's do a scientific measurement of african-americans versus, lets say asian americans in height, sprinting, muscle size, vertical jump, bone size, rhythm co-ordination, etc.. etc.. These are all heavily genetically based and are testable and have been tested. They all effect the raw ability to be good at basketball. Even black athletes will talk about the difference in thigh and buttock muscles. It's obvious.

I understand how this is unpalatable to liberal thinkers like yourself. And I myself can think how this seems unfair. But I would rather accept and logically deal with inconvienant truths.

 

[Caladan]

Is race another social construct developed by man to bring about diffrence and or seperation between himself to feel superior ? As you all proablly know by now I am a being who is against the concept of there being race since in my belief it would bring about sterotypical ******** from people like oh blacke people are stupid or have sex with apes in Africa or some polsturting bull like that etc. Yes I know that such things are said still in this world and it is not just blacks but other minorites in general that get made fun etc. So I was wondering if there was any scientfic evidence that would seprate us by genitics to the point that any of this stuff could be given creedense too ?

While its true that genetic diversity may be greater in the same group more than it is between different groups. Today there are people who simply shrug away historical and contemporary social events by dismissing them with the mantra 'there are no races'. In that I mean that saying that there are no races will not make historical transatlantic slave trade disappear. It's a sort of a cop out.
Also, while there is one human race, there is certainly biological diversity. It may be a very small variation, but it does exist. Not enough to create separate races, but enough to show that 'race' is not only a social construct but also a biological one. There are numerous fascinating researches into human genetics, and the genetic of various ethnic groups, their historical migrations, and other aspects. It spans medical researches to archaeological researches.
For example genetic studies to trace Viking movements into the British isles, or genetic studies in the Mediterranean to trace Phoenician movement.

 

[Drolefille]

Yes I'm making the case that black people are genetically predisposed to being better basketball players. Anyone that could possibly disagree, I believe, is blinded by an emotional prejudice.

let's do a scientific measurement of african-americans versus, lets say asian americans in height, sprinting, muscle size, vertical jump, bone size, rhythm co-ordination, etc.. etc.. These are all heavily genetically based and are testable and have been tested. They all effect the raw ability to be good at basketball. Even black athletes will talk about the difference in thigh and buttock muscles. It's obvious.

I understand how this is unpalatable to liberal thinkers like yourself. And I myself can think how this seems unfair. But I would rather accept and logically deal with inconvienant truths.

Black athletes are not evolutionary biologists.

Neither are you, I'm assuming?

Additionally the "African American" and "Asian American" populations are vastly smaller than the "black" and "Asian" races, and have different selection pressures and different historical experiences. The number of short "African American" clients that I work with - who still play basketball for fun, btw - is just as much anecdotal evidence that there's no predisposition to be amazing basketball players. Additionally you ignore all sorts of sociological and economic pressures involved.

But it's sure easy to say "they're tall and have extra strong muscles" right?

 

[Alceste]

Yes I'm making the case that black people are genetically predisposed to being better basketball players. Anyone that could possibly disagree, I believe, is blinded by an emotional prejudice.

let's do a scientific measurement of african-americans versus, lets say asian americans in height, sprinting, muscle size, vertical jump, bone size, rhythm co-ordination, etc.. etc.. These are all heavily genetically based and are testable and have been tested. They all effect the raw ability to be good at basketball. Even black athletes will talk about the difference in thigh and buttock muscles. It's obvious.

I understand how this is unpalatable to liberal thinkers like yourself. And I myself can think how this seems unfair. But I would rather accept and logically deal with inconvienant truths.

You sound like someone who has never put in the necessary effort to become really, really good at something. Sometimes, people say to me "oh, you're so talented" and then something like "I don't have a musical bone in my body", as if they think I was born with the ability and they were not so lucky. I say "it's not talent, it's tens of thousands of hours of practice, spread across thirty-three years". Like you, they never believe me. They're lazy. They prefer to believe technical ability is nature, not nurture, so they don't have to do any work - it would be pointless.

If you are going to insist anyone who disagrees with you has liberal blinkers on, I invite you to produce your scientific evidence of black people's genetic predisposition for basketball excellence.