Have you heard about all of this ridiculousness coming from Psychology Today? First the publication made the outrageous statement that Black women are physically less attractive than other women (as a fact, not some stupid opinion); then, after a widespread public outcry over the obnoxious piece (including hundreds of thousands of petition signers against the author, Dr. Satoshi Kanazawa, as well as the teacher’s students demanding their professor’s immediate resignation), they offered a half-hearted apology two weeks later.
Psychology Today said they were sorry for the pain and suffering they caused, said that the blog post was taken down, and that they don’t tolerate racism and prejudice. Most people are saying that their lukewarm apology is not enough to address the pseudoscience they’ve allowed to run on their blog. To read the apology in full, and to see what else activists are saying it lacks, click here. You can also ask the publication to do better at the website.
Change.org is calling for the publication to do much more to atone for their blog, including publishing articles that debunk scientific racism and dismissing Dr. Kanazawa as basically an idiot. That’s all well and good, but the damage is done—and I’m seeing websites (such as the first link above) not only treat the article as more than rubbish, but an actual piece to be debated—and then offer other reasons than the doctor’s why Black woman might be considered less attractive! To give this piece an ounce of credibility rather than dismissing it for the bull it is, is simply outrageous.
I’m not saying we should ignore the article, but we should definitely point fingers at it and laugh and/or snarl, rather than offer actual scientific commentary and argumentation for or against it. In no way should we be acknowledging this drivel as actual science. So shame on you, too, blogosphere, for giving the piece—and Dr. Kanazawa—an ounce of credibility that neither deserve.