Einstein: The Negro Question (1946)

Post by saraid216 » Sat, Dec 13, 2014, 7:48 PM UTC

lotsofmangos wrote: post #52

wutangson1 wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Great point, even considering that Einstein seems to be taking Aristotle and ancient Greek dogma totally out of context. Perhaps, as was and is a tradition in academic circles, he was advocating that contemporary scientists were in fact better and more enlightened than the Greeks. Or, maybe it was a reaction against Hitler's fascination with the ancient Greeks. Yet, Aristotle did not present a clear belief system on…

Plato wrote Meno and Aristotle presented a very clear belief system on slavery in Book I, Chapters 3 through 7 of The Politics and in Book 7 of the Nicomachean Ethics. "But is there any one thus intended by nature to be a slave, and for whom such a condition is expedient and right, or rather is not all slavery a violation of nature?" "There is no difficulty in answering this question, on grounds both of reason and of…

Post by scobar » Sat, Dec 13, 2014, 7:49 PM UTC

lpsz wrote: post #3

What, however, can the man of good will do to combat this deeply rooted prejudice? More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help -- the transition from "us" and "them" to a unified "us." And yet, it's disappointing how segregated America still is today. One fairly in-depth study [1] offers an example of how "today" came to be. (This report is not about any current events, but rathe…

Post by saraid216 » Sat, Dec 13, 2014, 7:56 PM UTC

itg wrote: post #12

lpsz wrote: post #3

What, however, can the man of good will do to combat this deeply rooted prejudice? More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help -- the transition from "us" and "them" to a unified "us." And yet, it's disappointing how segregated America still is today. One fairly in-depth study [1] offers an example of how "today" came to be. (This report is not about any current events, but rathe…

"More diversity (in neighborhoods, in workplaces, in schools) would certainly help" I'm not so sure. I went to a very diverse and large high school in NJ and what ends up happening is self segregation. All the ethnic groups would mostly end up hanging out with their own types.

Post by pvnick » Sat, Dec 13, 2014, 7:58 PM UTC

ivraatiems wrote: post #96

pvnick wrote: post #93

I hope what I have to say is not as controversial as I fear, but I don't think that individual racist beliefs are as big a problem as we have been told. To look at somebody and consciously judge them to be inferior based on their skin color is so outdated and obsolete, that those who do so are fringe members of society who are typically elderly and either changing their mindset or dying out. We elected a black presid…

What evidence leads you to believe that it will, in fact, die on its own?

Post by jacquesm » Sat, Dec 13, 2014, 8:01 PM UTC

huxley wrote: post #67

mariodiana wrote: post #4

The thing I like is the reference to Aristotle. Today, there are some people who are too quick to brand anyone who disagrees with their enlightened views as a "moron" or worse. There's no winning hearts and minds that way. It's better to gently point out the mistakes of those who are otherwise worthy of respect, in the hopes that this will spur others towards self-reflection, than to castigate and put people on the d…

I don't think Einstein was being that nice, he was essentially saying that intelligence and education were not guarantees against bigotry and bias. Aristotle proposed in Book 1 of Politics that certain human beings were natural slaves, as different from the free citizens of Athens as human beings were from beasts. He argued that barbarians deserved enslavement because they lacked souls. Back in 1550, Aristotle was ma…