Still clearing out my mail queue (down to only 597 at last
count!) I came across a TIPS letter relating to the racist views
of Bertrand Russell. Russell (in _Marriage and Morals_, 1929)
was quoted as saying:
"It seems on the whole fair to regard Negroes as on the average
inferior to white men, although for work in the tropics they are
indispensable, so that their extermination would be highly
undesirable".
I was curious about the context of this shameful remark, so
I got around to checking it out. It appears on p. 209. My
impression is that while Russell certainly holds racist views
typical of his times, that particular passage is in the context
of an argument _against_ what he calls "race eugenics". He
states the Nazi argument that Darwinian survival of the fittest
requires a superior race to use force to increase at the expense
of inferior races. He then says:
"The political propaganda bound up with racial eugenics is mostly
of an undesirable sort; but let us forget this, and examine the
question on its merits".
I believe he is saying "For the sake of the argument, let's see
where this premise takes us. His point seems to be that it
contradicts itself. But what is interesting to me is not this but
the fact that Russell's intent in the quoted passage has been
altered by removing a significant qualifying phrase without any
indication that this was done. The restored phrase reads:
"...although for work in the tropics they are indispensable, so
that their extermination (apart from questions of humanity)
would be highly undesirable".
It's still a shameful statement. But it's clear that whoever
first lifted this passage for others to quote made sure it would
appear as evil as possible, with no hint of qualification.
By coincidence, if I recall a dramatic news photo yesterday in
the Montreal Gazette correctly, it showed a Palestinian
threatening an Israeli policement with a club. The caption noted
that a videotape alleging Israeli brutality was being circulated
in which this bit of significant information had been carefully
excised. At least with people's writings, we can still check the
original source. It's a good idea.
-Stephen
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stephen Black, Ph.D. tel: (819) 822-9600 ext 2470
Department of Psychology fax: (819) 822-9661
Bishop's University e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Lennoxville, QC
J1M 1Z7
Canada Department web page at http://www.ubishops.ca/ccc/div/soc/psy
Check out TIPS listserv for teachers of psychology at:
http://www.frostburg.edu/dept/psyc/southerly/tips/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
