Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

Superior: The Return of Race Science by Angela Saini

6 reviews

kveylet's review against another edition

informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

This is an amazing dive into the rise and fall and creeping rise of scientific racism, and how entangled the facade of objectivity has always been with how we divide power socially. It’s written with documentarian’s vision and a historian’s command of these communities of scientists and racists. Everyone interested in thinking about how we redress the social harms of racism and move away from race as a cause for division of power should read this. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Slavery, Xenophobia, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Genocide, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, and War

matthew_david's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism and Xenophobia

josieruby1's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, and Colonisation

Moderate: Genocide, Mental illness, Slavery, Torture, Islamophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

librarymouse's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

This book offers a nuanced perspective on the history of attempting to find biolo ical difference between individuals on the basis of perceived,  nd often arbitrary categories. Rather than outr ght dismissing the possibility that there could be biological differences in ethnic groups that we have not discovered yet, Saini works from the perspective of the social impact of this type of race-based research and explores the ethical dilemmas that stem from it. One of her major points addresses the reality that the ways people are categorized  or studies, in terms of race, are often arbitrary and poorly defined. The defining factors are social, and often lack rooting in scien ific application.

Saini also explores the history of weaponized race science, leading back to the Nazis. There's a common belief that after world war II not the ideology fell away to a more liberal worldview. Saini explores the ways and which this perceived history is incorrect and the outcomes of having a hidden ring of bigoted, attempting to work science to suit their beliefs. The same groups that claim that there is a secret Jewish cabal running the world actually do work in the shadows, funding or being funded by wealthy individuals and/or organizations for work intent on proving racial superiority in one way or the other, regardless of how many lies need to be told and test results need to be warped to reach that outcome. Saini covers many bases, addressing the issue of race science across the globe, but she pays special attention to the powder keg that is the United States, and the unique circumstances that lead to the current political climate and infrastructure.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Colonisation, War, and Classism

Moderate: Islamophobia

Minor: Pregnancy

erenreads12's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.0

This was a comprehensive, detailed guide to the roots of race science and the pervasiveness of old ideology, made modern by the nurturing of racist sentiments and spaces. This feels like an important read for anybody who wants to begin to learn how to be anti-racist, but especially for those in scientific fields, particularly in research.

This was, unsurprisingly, very science heavy, particularly in the beginning - here it felt at times inaccessible, and I had some difficulty understanding the scientific theory presented. However, by and large Angela Saini does a good job of making the science and theory as understandable as possible. If you're picking up this book, be prepared for the technicalities to be sometimes challenging - but I would recommend picking it up nonetheless.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Racism, Slavery, and Xenophobia

mignonne's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, and Police brutality