Should we do away with Race and use the term Breed?

[stui magpie]

Hear me out here. Humans are a single species with a significant amount of variation in physical attributes, which we use the term "race" to distinguish between, based on geographic origin.

However, Humans are a single species and really 1 race.

Unlike most other mammalian species, with the exception of domesticated animals such as dogs, cats, sheep and cattle, humans don't look alike.

Gorillas are a single species, distinct from Chimps, Orangutans etc and within that species there is little physical variation.

So rather than the now divisive term "race", should we use the same term that we use to distinguish between different groups of domestic animals with common physical attributes, and use the term "breed" instead?

A Great Dane and a Labrador look nothing alike, but are both different breeds of dog that can interbreed with each other. Unlike Gorillas and Chimps, but the same as Humans of Asian, African and Caucasian background.

Thoughts?

[HAL]

People have a lot of flaws.

[David]

It's a good question on one level – I don't know that the concepts are so fundamentally different (probably the key one is that dogs have been deliberately selectively bred and thus have much more distinctive appearances, whereas human diversity is far less marked).

But if you're looking to replace the word 'race', I think you might be barking up the wrong tree (so to speak!). While its usage persists in political contexts, my impression is that no-one in science has talked about 'race' in decades. A better term (and one that captures the many variations of human appearance rather than trying to put us in a handful of distinct boxes) is 'ethnicity'. Trying to bring in another term that refers to discrete categorisations and that most people associate with animals might not be the most productive step forward, given the longstanding association between racism and dehumanisation.

[HAL]

When is better term and one that captures the many variations of human appearance rather than trying to put us in a handful of distinct boxes not 'ethnicity' ?

[stui magpie]

I thought of the dehumanisation bit, using a term used for animals, but if you applied it across the board to all, it's no longer dehumanising is it?

[Bucks5]

Maybe you are onto something. Don't they refer to people of mixed race or ethnicity as half breeds or half caste?

Actually ethnicity also works, eg. "So, what is your ethnicity?"

[stui magpie]

Tried to fix the title 3 times, dunno WTF is going on there.

[think positive]

I can’t believe you used the A word.

Nope, just sounds wrong, though I get where your coming from.

[stui magpie]

Which A word?

[stui magpie]

[KenH]

[K]

Ken, only the tubby pommy ginger is available for you (though she doesn't think much of you either).

[think positive]

[K]

[stui magpie]