Galton And Eugenics

Many of the unresolved issues of substandard education, segregated neighborhoods, broken families, economic disadvantages and social inequalities continue to contribute to the poor performance rate of young African-Americans on the SAT’s and other required college entry exams. Regrettable, SAT’s and other standardize test have become ritualistic and institutionalize; cemented in the impenetrable walls of higher education. Universities and colleges depend on these “gatekeepers” to maintain the privileged class and to cherry pick the “crème of the crop”. This covert system of selection was never intended for all, but designed to maintain social stratification, create caste systems and marginalize certain groups of people from fair competition.

However, it would be Darwin’s cousin Francis Galton, who would play a pivotal role in influencing the movement of eugenics. Galton, an established polymath and innovator of contemporary statistical analysis envisioned mankind could gain control of their genetic future by implementing eugenics by advancing pro-creation of the fittest and avoiding the weak and socially inferior (Shapiro,2004). In 1869 he published his book entitled “Hereditary Genius “which explains how individuals inherit higher aptitudes, personalities, and knowledge from their parents. At the time, his work had huge impact on American society. Prominent American eugenicists promoted the theory of hereditary advancement of mankind during the early part of the twentieth century (Selden,

This rapid population increase made numerous leaders fearful and uncomfortable, persuading many to implement new strategies and promote propaganda in order to influence policy, religion and education against the influx of new immigration. Notable American eugenicists promoted the theory of hereditary advancement of mankind during the early part of the twentieth century (Selden, 2000). They worked diligently to change laws which would prohibit immigration of southern and eastern Europeans who were deemed as unfit, poor and feebleminded. In the Supreme Court case of Buck v. Bell 1927, Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes upheld the status of the Virginia law, stating, “Three generations of imbeciles are enough”, sanctioning eugenics sterilization of the psychologically dysfunctional (Lombardo, 1985). As the director of the Eugenics Record Office (ERO) in Cold Spring Harbor, Long Island, Harry Laughlin became a leading advocate for campaigns against immigration and sterilization of the degenerate in society during the twentieth century (McDonald, 2013). He would later go on to create a prototypical eugenics law which could be used by the courts and legal experts. In 1924, the Virginia law was eerily similar to statue used in the Buck v. Bell case. Au (2013) explains how eugenics and IQ testing have a historical connection with the origins of high stakes testing in America. Research by Kohlman (2013)