Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogue
As genomics initiatives have spread around the world–often in the name of genetic diversity and inclusion–they have not only invoked promises of a medical revolution, but also revived categories of human difference that resemble erstwhile racial classifications. This is despite the fact that genetic...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Genetics |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2024.1523406/full |
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| author | Ernesto Schwartz-Marin Tayyaba Jiwani Sarah Abel Yulia Egorova Amade M’charek Diogo Meyer Andrés Moreno Estrada Katharina Schramm Peter Wade Michel Naslavsky Michel Naslavsky |
| author_facet | Ernesto Schwartz-Marin Tayyaba Jiwani Sarah Abel Yulia Egorova Amade M’charek Diogo Meyer Andrés Moreno Estrada Katharina Schramm Peter Wade Michel Naslavsky Michel Naslavsky |
| author_sort | Ernesto Schwartz-Marin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | As genomics initiatives have spread around the world–often in the name of genetic diversity and inclusion–they have not only invoked promises of a medical revolution, but also revived categories of human difference that resemble erstwhile racial classifications. This is despite the fact that geneticists broadly dismissed racial categories as obsolete and unfounded after the Human Genome Project was completed in 2003. In fact, contemporary genomics initiatives have often ended up reinforcing ethnocentric and nativist conceptions of difference, drawing intense criticism from activists and critical social scientists. This roundtable brings leading population geneticists grappling with the question of genetic identity and ancestry, especially in the global South, together with some of the most prominent scholars of race in genomics. The result is an engaging and insightful dialogue on questions that have vexed the field for decades. How do we—indeed “can” we reconcile the boundaries of biological and social difference? How do notions of “genetic ancestry” and “biogeographical ancestry differ from erstwhile racial and ethnic categories? Can racial categories ever be shorn of their colonial and oppressive legacies? Here we scrutinise the methodological and epistemological frameworks in contemporary genomics that work to define populations and shape our understanding of biology, society, health, and disease. We seek to clarify perspectives across the disciplinary divide, and to advance constructive and grounded critiques that contend with the question of justice in genomics. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4deec826073f4347afd1761e29136b32 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1664-8021 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Genetics |
| spelling | doaj-art-4deec826073f4347afd1761e29136b322025-01-23T06:56:38ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Genetics1664-80212025-01-011510.3389/fgene.2024.15234061523406Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogueErnesto Schwartz-Marin0Tayyaba Jiwani1Sarah Abel2Yulia Egorova3Amade M’charek4Diogo Meyer5Andrés Moreno Estrada6Katharina Schramm7Peter Wade8Michel Naslavsky9Michel Naslavsky10Department of Sociology, Philosophy, and Anthropology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United KingdomDepartment of Sociology, Philosophy, and Anthropology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United KingdomInstitute for Philosophical Research, National Autonomous University of Mexico, Mexico City, MexicoDepartment of Anthropology, University of Durham, Durham, United KingdomDepartment of Anthropology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, NetherlandsDepartment of Genetics and Evolutionary Biology, Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilAdvanced Genomics Unit, Center for Research and Advanced Studies (Cinvestav), Mexico City, MexicoFaculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Bayreuth, Bayreuth, GermanyDepartment of Social Anthropology, University of Manchester, Manchester, United KingdomDepartment of Genetics and Evolutionary Biology, Biosciences Institute of the University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil0Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, São Paulo, BrazilAs genomics initiatives have spread around the world–often in the name of genetic diversity and inclusion–they have not only invoked promises of a medical revolution, but also revived categories of human difference that resemble erstwhile racial classifications. This is despite the fact that geneticists broadly dismissed racial categories as obsolete and unfounded after the Human Genome Project was completed in 2003. In fact, contemporary genomics initiatives have often ended up reinforcing ethnocentric and nativist conceptions of difference, drawing intense criticism from activists and critical social scientists. This roundtable brings leading population geneticists grappling with the question of genetic identity and ancestry, especially in the global South, together with some of the most prominent scholars of race in genomics. The result is an engaging and insightful dialogue on questions that have vexed the field for decades. How do we—indeed “can” we reconcile the boundaries of biological and social difference? How do notions of “genetic ancestry” and “biogeographical ancestry differ from erstwhile racial and ethnic categories? Can racial categories ever be shorn of their colonial and oppressive legacies? Here we scrutinise the methodological and epistemological frameworks in contemporary genomics that work to define populations and shape our understanding of biology, society, health, and disease. We seek to clarify perspectives across the disciplinary divide, and to advance constructive and grounded critiques that contend with the question of justice in genomics.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2024.1523406/fulldecolonialracesovereigntyhetero-identificationgenetic ancestrypopulation sampling |
| spellingShingle | Ernesto Schwartz-Marin Tayyaba Jiwani Sarah Abel Yulia Egorova Amade M’charek Diogo Meyer Andrés Moreno Estrada Katharina Schramm Peter Wade Michel Naslavsky Michel Naslavsky Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogue Frontiers in Genetics decolonial race sovereignty hetero-identification genetic ancestry population sampling |
| title | Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogue |
| title_full | Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogue |
| title_fullStr | Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogue |
| title_full_unstemmed | Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogue |
| title_short | Genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics: a cross-disciplinary dialogue |
| title_sort | genetic ancestry and the colonial legacies of race in genomics a cross disciplinary dialogue |
| topic | decolonial race sovereignty hetero-identification genetic ancestry population sampling |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fgene.2024.1523406/full |
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