Phrenology and IQ tests: the far-right revival of discredited race science
Guardian1 day
University of Edinburgh Apologizes for 'Outsized' Role in Racist Scientific Theories
Above: The University of Edinburgh's Old College quadrangle. Image copyright: Aniruddha Chatterjee/Getty Images
The Spin
Left narrative
This shameful legacy of promoting scientific racism demands accountability. For centuries, this prestigious institution gave academic credibility to phrenology, eugenics, and racial pseudoscience that fueled colonialism. History cannot forget decades of harm caused by professors who disguised white supremacist ideology as scholarship, and Edinburgh must make up for this dark stain in its history.
Right narrative
This misguided review is nothing more than woke virtue signaling during a financial crisis. Rather than addressing real problems like £140 million deficits and job cuts, administrators pander to activists by demonizing Enlightenment giants like David Hume. This self-flagellating exercise wastes resources that could fund scholarships based on merit, not race.