Race: The Power of an Illusion

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Why Humans haven't Evolved into Subspecies

by California Newsreel

While humans appear diverse in terms of physical traits, variations in our genetic makeup are in fact very limited since humans have not had the time and isolation to evolve into separate subspecies.

Race and Gene Studies: What Differences Make a Difference?

by Larry Adelman

Executive producer of the RACE series Larry Adelman breaks down how to interpret genetic discoveries that appear to suggest differences along racial lines.

Measuring Genetic Variation Between Groups

"There's as much or more diversity and genetic difference within any racial group as there is between people of different racial groups." -Pilar Ossorio

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The Evolution of Human Biology & Genomics: Interview with Leslea Hlusko

Leslea Hlusko, Professor of Integrative Biology, discusses new research in genomics in regards to human variation, and relates it to the science presented in the film, and outlines the important role human biologists can play in engaging with social issues and misperceptions about human variation.

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Interview with Larry Adelman, Executive Producer of the Race Series

Larry Adelman, executive producer of the Race-Power of an Illusion documentary series, discusses why California Newsreel decided to partner with UC Berkeley to redevelop and relaunch a companion website for the series.

Trailer for Race—The Power of An Illusion

Trailer: Just because race doesn't exist in biology doesn't mean it isn't very real, helping shape life chances and opportunities.

2020 panel discussion on Race—The Power of an Illusion, Part I

On Friday, Sept. 11, 2020 we hosted the first in a three-part series of events which consisted of a screening of Race—The Power of an Illusion, Part I: The Difference Between Us followed by a live panel discussion.

Is there a gene that controls for skin color?

Why do people who need organ and bone marrow transplants tend to match more with people of the same ethnic or racial background?

Is it true that people metabolize drugs at different rates and that this correlates with "racial" groupings?

Does the series suggest there are no genetic differences between populations?

Does mitochondrial DNA change over time?

When looking for genetic variation, does it make a difference to look at "coding" parts of the genome as opposed to "non-coding"?

How do forensics investigators determine a person's race from their DNA?

Are sickle cell and Tay-Sachs racial diseases?

How do you explain 98% genetic similarity but huge phenotypic variation?

What can a person's DNA tell you about historical migrations and genetic ancestry?

Richard Lewontin

How much genetic variation really exists between people? Can genetic research help us unlock human differences?

Richard Lewontin is currently (2019) Professor Emeritus of Biology and Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology in the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Emeritus at Harvard University. He has written many celebrated books on evolution and human variation books including The Triple Helix.

Why doesn't it make sense to classify people into races? How do we sort through all our confusion about genetics, biology and things like athletic ability? Where did our traditional notions of race come from?

Jonathan Marks is currently (2019) Professor of Anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He is the author of Tales of the ex-Apes: How We Think About Human Evolution, and Human Biodiversity and What It Means to Be 98% Chimpanzee.

Joseph Graves, Jr.

Are certain races athletically superior? How much genetic diversity is there among humans?

Joseph Graves, Jr. is currently (2019) Professor of Nanoengineering at the Joint School of Nanoscience & Nanoengineering and author of The Emperor's New Clothes: Biological Theories of Race at the Millennium.

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Copyright 2018-2019, California Newsreel and Regents of the University of California. This website was jointly produced by California Newsreel, the Othering & Belonging Institute, the U.C. Berkeley Library, and the American Cultures Center at U.C. Berkeley, based on original material created by California Newsreel in 2003.