密歇根新闻广播 谈到偏见时 我们应当关注肤色而不是人种

We've had conversations on this program about race and racial tensions many times. But one scholar said we've got it all wrong. He said we shouldn't be talking about race; that's relatively¹ meaningless. He wants to shift the conversation about bias² from "race" to skin color.

Ron Hall is a professor of social work at Michigan State University. He joined Stateside today to explain.

"Race is merely a proxy³ for skin color," Hall said. "'Skin color' we can define and we can measure. Race is just a political and social construct that we've used since the Antebellum [pre-Civil War period]. More and more, as we get closer to the next century ... we're going to come to a time when you won't be able to look at individuals and differentiate⁴ their so-called 'race' based on their hair texture⁵, eye color, skin color ... racial miscegenation⁶ will be the norm at that point." 

Hall published an article in The Conversation about how skin color, or the amount of melanin, is an issue within the African-American community.

"The lighter⁷ complected you are, the less threatening you are to mainstream⁸ society," Hall said. "Therefore, you're likely to earn more money, get better jobs and likely to aspire⁹ to a higher rate of education."

Listen above for more, including how Barack Obama's complexion¹⁰ helped him become the the country's 44th president.

1 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

2 bias   

n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见

参考例句：

• They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
• He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。

3 proxy   

n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人

参考例句：

• You may appoint a proxy to vote for you.你可以委托他人代你投票。
• We enclose a form of proxy for use at the Annual General Meeting.我们附上委任年度大会代表的表格。

4 differentiate   

vi.(between)区分；vt.区别；使不同

参考例句：

• You can differentiate between the houses by the shape of their chimneys.你可以凭借烟囱形状的不同来区分这两幢房子。
• He never learned to differentiate between good and evil.他从未学会分辨善恶。

5 texture   

n.(织物)质地；(材料)构造；结构；肌理

参考例句：

• We could feel the smooth texture of silk.我们能感觉出丝绸的光滑质地。
• Her skin has a fine texture.她的皮肤细腻。

6 miscegenation   

n.人种混杂；混血

参考例句：

• It was only in 1967 that the United States finally struck down its anti miscegenation laws.直到1967年，美国才废除了反种族通婚的法律。
• In contemporary times,Brazilians have come to regard miscegenation as a defining national trait.在当代，巴西人已经把种族通婚看作是鲜明的国家特征。

7 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

8 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

9 aspire   

vi.(to，after)渴望，追求，有志于

参考例句：

• Living together with you is what I aspire toward in my life.和你一起生活是我一生最大的愿望。
• I aspire to be an innovator not a follower.我迫切希望能变成个开创者而不是跟随者。

10 complexion   

n.肤色；情况，局面；气质，性格

参考例句：

• Red does not suit with her complexion.红色与她的肤色不协调。
• Her resignation puts a different complexion on things.她一辞职局面就全变了。