The Bell Curve Wars: Race, Intelligence, and the Future of America (A New Republic Book)

The Bell Curve by Richard J. Herrnstein and Charles Murray has generated a firestorm of debate, confirming for some their secret belief in the innate inferiority of certain ”races” or ethnic groups, angering many who view the book as an ill-concealed racist manifesto, and worrying untold others who fear the further racial polarization of American society. In The Bell Curve Wars , a group of our country's most distinguished intellectuals dismantles the alleged scientific foundations and criticizes the alarming public policy conclusions of this incendiary book. Anyone who has wondered about the connection among genes, race, and intelligence, all those anxious about racial antagonisms in our nation, those who question the efficacy of social welfare programs, all those troubled but unconvinced by Herrnstein and Murray's book, will want to read The Bell Curve Wars. Black Power Is My Mental Health: Accomplishments Of The Civil Rights Movement / Emma Jones Lapsansky -- How Little Has Changed, How Much Remains To Be Done / Nat Hentoff -- Slavery And The Afro-american World / Sidney W. Mintz -- On Racism In America / Harvey Sarles -- Social Science's Conceptualization Of The Afro-american / Stephen S. Baratz -- Blackness And Madness: Images Of Evil And Tactics Of Exclusion / Thomas S. Szasz -- Two Cheers For The National Riot Commission / Gary T. Marx -- Notion Of Ghetto Culture / Ulf Hannerz -- Question Of Black Culture / Robert Blauner -- Understanding Black Language / William A. Stewart -- Rapping And Capping: Black Talk As Art / Roger D. Abrahams. Background Of The Blues / Harry Oster -- Black Music And White America / Don Heckman -- Great Black Hope / Stanley Diamond -- African Folktales In Afro-america / Daniel J. Crowley -- Afro-american Religions: Traditions And Transformations / Erika E. Bourguignon -- White America's Response To Black Militancy / Joyce A. Ladner -- On Being A Black Man / Charles W. Thomas -- Black Middle Class And The Struggle For Civil Rights / Charles U. Smith -- About This Thing Called Ghetto Education / Norman J. Johnson -- Black Student Protest In White Universities / Donald M. Henderson -- Nigger And The Narcissus (or Self-awareness In Black Education) / Edward W. Crosby -- Discovering Afro-america / John F. Szwed. Edited By John F. Szwed. Includes Bibliographical References. "The Bell Curve" by Richard J. Herrnstein and Charles Murray has generated enormous debate as a result of its claim that there is a connection between race and intelligence. The essays of this collection respond to "The Bell Curve" in various ways. Taken together, the following offer an antidote to a work of dubious premises and socially alarming predictions: (1) "Curveball" (Stephen Jay Gould); (2) "Cracking Open the IQ Box" (Howard Gardner); (3) "Race, IQ, and Scientism" (Richard Nisbett); (4) "The Sources of 'The Bell Curve'" (Jeffrey Rosen and Charles Lane); (5) "Paradise Miscalculated" (Dante Ramos); (6) "Ethnicity and IQ" (Thomas Sowell); (7) "Back to the Future with 'The Bell Curve': Jim Crow, Slavery, and 'G'" (Jacqueline Jones); (8) "Why Now?" (Henry Louis Gates, Jr.); (9) "Caste, Crime, and Precocity" (Andrew Hacker); (10) "Has There Been a Cognitive Revolution in America? The Flawed Sociology of 'The Bell Curve'" (Alan Wolfe); (11) "Hearts of Darkness" (John B. Judis); (12) "The 'It-Matters-Little' Gambit" (Mickey Kaus); (13) "Scientific Truth and the American Dilemma" (Nathan Glazer); (14) "Equality: An Endangered Faith" (Martin Peretz); (15) "The Lowerers" (Leon Wieseltier); (16) "Developing the Rage To Win" (Hugh Pearson); (17) "Brave New Right" (Michael Lind); (18) "The Phony War" (Randall Kennedy); and (19) "For Whom the Bell Curves" (Orlando Patterson). (SLD) Introduction 1 Curveball 2 Cracking Open the IQ Box 3 Race, IQ, and Scientism 4 The Sources of The Bell Curve 5 Paradise Miscalculated 6 Ethnicity and IQ 7 Back to the Future with The Bell Curve: Jim Crow, Slavery, and G 8 Why Now? 9 Caste, Crime, and Precocity 10 Has There Been a Cognitive Revolution in America? The Flawed Sociology of The Bell Curve 11 Hearts of Darkness 12 The "It-Matters-Little" Gambit 13 Scientific Truth and the American Dilemma 14 Equality: An Endangered Faith 15 The Lowerers 16 Developing the Rage to Win 17 Brave New Right 18 The Phony War 19 For Whom the Bell Curves List of Contributors cant -.38, with the more African blood groups being associated with the higher IQs.* Of course, the authors might reply that such information is not available. Nor is this surprising. F The Bell Curve, by Richard J. Herrnstein and Charles Murray (Free Press; $30), subtitled Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life, provides a superb and unusual opportunity to gain insight into the meaning of experiment as a method in science. The distinguished contributors dismantle the alleged scientific foundations and criticize the alarming public policy conclusions of the book that has inflamed public debate.