Robert Bennett Bean Quotes
The frontal region of the Negro skull has been repeatedly shown to be much smaller than that of the Caucasian. Considering this fact, the conclusion is reached that the Negro has a smaller proportion of the faculties pertaining to the frontal lobe than the Caucasian. The Negro, then, lacks reason, judgment, apperception, affection, self-control, will power, orientation, ethical and esthetic attributes, and the relation of the ego (of personality or self) to environment…. The skull capacity of the Negro has been repeatedly demonstrated to be less than that of the Caucasian
This quotation and the so called “facts” therein have been quoted by many to demonstrate general racial inferiority of Blacks as compared to whites in the first half of the 20th century. There are two difficulties with their arguments. First it has been scientifically demonstrated that amongst many animals including humans brain size has nothing to do with intelligence. For example, the primitive Neanderthal man had a bigger skull and brain than modern man. Second, it is not the case that Negro brains are smaller than whites. Stephen J. Gould has demonstrated the fallacy of these early studies showing the difference. It is a classic scientific example that researchers looking for a particular solution will often find it whether or not it is real.
Robert Bennett Bean, 1874-1944, Physician & Anthropoligist, Some Racial Peculiarities of the Negro Brain
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Morton the had the largest collection of skulls I the world, and “measured” the cranial capacity. The implication of superior Caucasian intellect so widely believed sprung from his research. Today, we not only know that cranial capacity is not correlated with intellectual capacity, but Stephen J. Gould has actually demonstrated that Morton’s measurements were incorrect anyway.
Bilbo was one of the worst racists who ever served in the Congress.
Charleston was in the Southern part of the state where most people supported slavery. Douglas made an unequivocal pitch for the racist vote {600060} and forced Lincoln to take a stand. Like many politicians today, Lincoln decided to give the audience what they wanted to hear. It is not clear whether or not he ever believed this statement or was just pandering in a political campaign. He had never said this in the Northern part of the state of before. Lincoln’s views on race changed and matured over the years, culminating in the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln lost the Senate seat to Douglas.
Lawrence was one of the very advanced scientists of his time presaging Darwin on a few issues. But he erroneously believed that character and intellect were heretical capabilities. Intellect has been shown to be an inheritable trait to some extent (50-60 percent), but it is not racial per se. And character as we now know is not inherited.
This quotation has been one that has been used to argue against Black and other minority racism as well as white racism.
The logic train from mixed blood to why lynching should not be prohibited is obscure but in filibusters Senators tended to just repeat all of their stump speeches or anything else because they had to keep talking.
Grady, a Georgian, prompted himself as a spokesman for the “New South” and while he did no advocate slavery and the brutality that had been inflicted on Southern Negroes, he was a strong white supremacist as this quotation demonstrates. He was only “liberal” compared with the total revanchist racists. However, when in the North he spoke kindly about the Negro. See Quotation 643652.
Robert Bennett Bean (1874–1944) was an associate professor of anatomy and ethnologist adept to craniometry and the concept of "race", whose scientific work was discredited by his mentor but who nonetheless became a professor at the University of Virginia and remained so until his death.
