It has no scientific basis. In reality, separating Asians from whites or blacks from Hispanics is about as valid as separating blond-haired people from brown-haired people. It's based purely on very shallow phenotypical characteristics like melanin concentration, hair texture, and nose shape.

In fact, by the logic of most people (who believe there is such a thing as race), one could just as easily divide people into categories based on whether they have mid-digital hair or whether their big toes are longer than their second toes.

Most people define racism as the idea that there are any substantive differences among the races, but I define racism as the idea that there is such a thing as race. By this definition, almost everyone in the world is a racist. Probably the main exceptions are biologists.

The observation comes centuries too late. The United States has a history of slavery and of the genocide or forced assimilation of indigenous peoples. Various parts of the world have had outbreaks of violent anti-semitism over the centuries. The Sudan is still killing people over race (of course, it's also a holy war). Conversely, the Ibero-American world covers the entire spectrum of the melanin (and phenotype) rainbow, as does, increasingly, the Old World.

Race is very real, politically and economically; the echoes of past "race is real" mindsets still reverberate here and now. While "race is a myth" is true and cute and all that, to make the mistake of using those four words to deliberately ignore the present realities worldwide (such as war and caste) shaped by race and racism is nearly as toxic as racism itself. And who can talk such a person down from dreaming in Technicolor?

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