Do Blind People See Race

The Blind Race Race is a dynamic and complex issue that has plagued the world for millennia. American society is the pinnacle of racial prejudice on nearly every aspect – after all the American Ideal was founded on the very idea of exclusion and seclusion within our society. Though there are many different racial ideas, one pervasive idea is that there is an athletic advantage that selected races are perceived to contain. This paper will draw aspects form the Dr. Graves’ papers on Athletic Ability within certain races and on Obasogie’s “Do Blind People See Race?”. The paper will result in a discussion about the inherent ability for people to “see” race and racial dynamics without fact nor reason but rather pressures and inherited stigmas. …show more content…
The participants who had been blind since birth were able to differentiate between races based on tone, smell and sounds – and even sited examples solidifying being taught that these specific smells and sounds where tied to a person of a specific race. The strength of the paper comes from the meticulously curated participants – ones who had been blind since birth – and also had a diverse upbringing (white and black, parents with different attitudes toward race). Both of Graves’ Papers highlight the perceptions of racial athletic ability but manage to use concrete data showing the reality of athletic ability running deeper than the color of the participants skin. His conclusion brought into account the participating countries’ and their wealth and dedication to specific events. The most valuable conclusions resulted in the idea that there is just a perception of racial superiority within specific athletic events and that these perceptions are not backed by performance but rather ingrained racial ideals – some that have been around for many …show more content…
In Grave’s “Sports”, conclusions about race were made from inferences on the appearance of the individuals. No specific inquiries about an individual’s racial background were made, but rather assumptions made based on physical appearance and nationality. This raises the concern about the data being slightly skewed based on physical perception. Another issue comes from the Obasogie study. The participants were directed toward the study by way of knowing each other. These issues do not necessarily negate the conclusions of the studies; however, I find myself questioning them, and wondering what impacts on the results of the studies would be. I think the most important reasoning on my behalf is questioning whether these possible issues of confounding are real issues or rather issues within myself that wants to find something wrong with the papers. To digress, I wonder if because some of my innate beliefs were challenged in the paper, I was searching for reasons to find the conclusions invalid. If the only issues I found to be those mentioned above then there is no reason I should disagree based on prior belief alone. In fact, I believe that this realization and discussion further promotes my understanding of these articles and their point of