A new eugenics? Thinking sociologically about where postgenomic science is headed

11 June 2021

Catherine Bliss
Department of Sociology
Rutgers University

zoom recording

Abstract

I will discuss my research on the ethical, legal, and social implications of genomic science. Since the mapping of the human genome, genomics has offered us new ways to think about human differences. Popular notions of race, gender, and sexuality have been transformed as we have found new ways to understand the relationship between populations and their social environments. This talk will showcase some of the enduring challenges that researchers face, especially in the new era of gene editing. It will examine eugenic trends that threaten to exacerbate challenges to equality in health and medicine.

References

• C Bliss, Race Decoded. The Genomic Fight for Racial Justice, Stanford University Press, 2012. Publisher website.
• C Bliss, Social by Nature. The Promise and Peril of Sociogenomics, Stanford University Press, 2018. Publisher website.