Towards a Genealogy of the Idea of “Race” and the Ideology of “Racism”

Dear Colleagues,

When we think of genealogy, the image of a tree emerges: roots anchored in soil for nutrient absorption, a single main trunk that supports extended branches and leaves, and green thickness. The etymological root of the word “genealogy” comes from “genos” or “ethnos” (both Greek terms), and, by extension, “race”. The suffix “logy”, from the Greek “logos”, means “reason”, or explanation, and, by extension, study, academic discipline, or science. “Genealogy” can thus be taken to mean a study that departs from the present and navigates back in time, in search of a sense of belonging to a bloodline or an ancestor/race originator. A genealogical tree typically illustrates those who branched out but descended from a shared ancestor. Genealogy serves as a bridge between fragments of identity, connecting the intricate paths of heritage across multiple generations. Beyond mere biological inheritance, it charts the passage of memories and shared experiences, stitching together a storied quilt with both visible and unseen strands from biology, history, intellectual traditions, and sociology.

Belief in “race” and racial prejudice is rooted in both the biological domain and the social/cultural soil. Socio-cultural sensitivity (of a positive or negative nature) to differences in physical appearance has existed across cultures and societies since the first encounters among different groups of humans. “Racism” is a term widely used to describe prejudice and discrimination against an individual or a group of people based on their physical attributes, for example, skin color.  What is the “genealogical” origin of the idea of “race” and the related concept and behavior of “racial prejudice”?  How has belief in “race” been perpetuated, deployed, and transformed into what we see and experience in the 21st century? What kind of “nutrient” does it absorb to be alive? From what kind of soil grows the tree of racism? To find answers to these questions, we must trace genealogical lines of racism across time and space in search of a coherent understanding of its causes and metamorphic nature.

This Special Issue will conduct an analytical examination of the contested terrain of so-called “woke” ideology and its associated discourses and critics. We will delve into evolving cultural narratives, inconsistent binaries of “woke” vs. “bigots”, and the conflating contexts that produced both critical race theories and Western heritage/civilization. We will attempt to disentangle the concept of race and scrutinize systemically the ideology of racism through multiple disciplinary lenses, including through sociological, historical, and cultural studies, as well as literary methodologies. All analyses will be framed by broader narratives of power and social justice, with the aim of illuminating the complexities and intersections that define race and racism.

Galvanized by sociological/cultural theories in your particular field(s), we welcome contributions to this Special Issue that examine racism by sequencing its historical, sociological, and cultural DNA. In doing so, we will create an intercultural and interdisciplinary platform enabling a genealogical examination of the cultural soil from which the tree of racism grows, as well as mapping out the philosophical roots and branches that support and perpetuate racist ideologies, concepts, perceptions, and practices.

Genealogy traces lineages and relations that are biologically related but have been obscured or dislocated due to a multitude of non-biological factors. The articles in this Special Issue will search for, and focus on, lost or intertwined familial branches, untangling and organizing them in genealogical trees. Through this approach, we aim to provide a systematic understanding of racism, revealing how historical and contextual dislocations have shaped experiences and mindsets across generations and geographies.

We invite you to submit an abstract of 200 words summarizing your intended contribution to our Guest Editor Mimi Yang, myang@carthage.edu, and the editorial office, genealogy@mdpi.com. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editor to ensure their proper fit within the scope of this Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

Dr. Mimi Yang
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Genealogy is an international peer-reviewed open access quarterly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• racism
• anti-racism
• genealogy
• genealogical tree
• racial hierarchy
• race relations
• racialization
• racialized psyche
• colorism
• identity
• discrimination
• Eurocentrism
• colonialism
• imperialism
• Global South
• equity vs. equality
• multiracial democracy vs. White nationalism
• race vs. ethnicity
• inclusion vs. exclusion