author examines the article by Biondi and Rickards entitled The Fallacy of finds this to reflect the classical Marxist view of race, and cites literature which in his opinion substantiates the reality of race. Key Words: Race, Marxism, Franz Boas, Loring Brace, S. Gould, M.R. Lefkovicz, Stephen Rose, J.I. Graves, L.S. Gottfredson, J.P. Rushton, A. Jensen. R Lynn. D. D'Souza. In their paper published in this issue of Mankind Quarterly, Biondi and Rickards predict the demise of the concept of race in human biology. Yet somewhat confusingly they compare this concept to the Phoenix and concede that it is thriving in forensic science, palaeontology and psychology (they fail to mention physiology). They also acknowledge that there is no consensus that this hypothesis is fallacious either amongst physical anthropologists or scientists generally. Indeed, whereas some researchers regard race as purely social and political construction, believe that it has explanatory power and predictive and construct validity (Rushton 1995). As Biondi and Rickards observe, Darwin (1871) discussed the problems in identifying human races, leading to differences in the number of sub-divisions used and to different definitions. Yet despite these difficulties, Darwin still posited evolutionbased racial (Simonton 1999). He regarded the ancient Greeks as the most intellectually gifted people that have ever existed. Moreover Darwin (1859) discussed the difficulties associated with the theory of evolution. Should that theory therefore be abandoned? Race, racism and social oppression are systematically conflated in this paper. text is embellished with colourful references to the curse on Ham, to the methodological errors of an obscure craniometrist (Bean) and to the derogatory assertions about Africans of an Italian anthropologist (Cipriani) prior to the Italian annexation of Ethiopia. troubles for the African populations began very early, the authors pointedly remark. Gould's attempt to associate recent research into group differences in IQ with the American Immigration Act of 1924 and the Holocaust comes immediately to mind (could 1981). Gould dismisses the myth that scientist can be objective. Like Althusser (1971) he views science as an integral part of the superstructure that maintains society. Lewontin claims that the main bulwark of the class system was formerly religion but is now social science (Lewontin 1991). latter is regarded by these various exponents of the sociology of knowledge as little more than factory producing rationalisations of socio-economic inequalities. Viewed from this perspective, race is a social, not biological, construct, as Graves (2001) puts it. Although he concedes that the ancients recognised human physical differences, Graves considers the notion of racial hierarchy relatively modern European idea intimately connected with the colonization of the New World and the importation of slaves from Africa. Europeans subjugated the Negroes and the American Indians. Then they attributed their degraded status in society to natural inferiority. For Biondi and Rickards, likewise, theories of the superiority of some races over others were an expedient social invention, moral justification for immoral behaviours when western societies justified slavery, colonialism and discrimination. Note however that Graves is not historian but laboratory geneticist who identifies himself as an AfricanAmerican intellectual (Brace 2001). And his suggestion that ranking people is uniquely European phenomenon is reminiscent of the dogmas of Afrocentric Ancient History (Cleopatra was black etc), as documented by Lefkowitz (1996). Like Graves, Biondi and Rickards emphasise the key role of ideological conditioning in the elaboration and diffusion of racial science. However, the latter can be viewed instead as an attempt to understand the puzzling civilisation gap between peoples. …