We are one genetic Community
Eery human being is made up of near-identical genetic material. With this fact in mind, we must accept race and ethnicity as a temporary label applied to a group of people with common characteristics at a certain point in time. Racial-ethnic identity is continuously evolving —it changes every day. Organizing and identifying ourselves within racial and ethnic categories does more harm than good.
No One Has Black or White Skin
Racial definitions are senseless. As an example, take the U.S. Census definition for white as:
“A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa. It includes people who indicate their race as ‘White’ or report entries such as Irish, German, Italian, Lebanese, Arab, Moroccan, or Caucasian.”
While the ludicrousness of this definition warrants a stand-alone “white” paper, we will highlight a few examples. The inclusion of Middle Eastern and North African into “white” as dictated by the U.S. government is highly disputed by many individuals with good reason. Additionally, there is an argument to be made that “white” itself as a racial description is racist in that it implies “not black.” There is no white or black skin, just shades of brown, driven by historical adaptation to U.V. radiation.
While there are academic distinctions between race and ethnicity, these lines are blurry at best. The practice of nation-state governments being aligned to race and ethnicity is a flimsy basis for a community.
We are human beings first and our nation is Earth.
Racial-Ethnic Tension
The nation-state regime endorses racial-ethnic pride. This nationalistic practice occurs in several ways, a few examples include:
These are merely a few examples of how ethnic tension is fostered by the nation-state regime. Ethnic Pride Enforcement Mechanisms at the very least create an environment of ethnic tension that can lead to ethnic hostility.
Sources:
Studying Genes | https://www.nigms.nih.gov/education/Documents/Studying_genes_final.pdf
About the Topic of Race | https://www.census.gov/topics/population/race/about.html
Middle Eastern and North African Americans do not Perceive Themselves as White | https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2117940119
Human Skin Pigmentation as an Adaptation to UV Radiation | https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.0914628107