Wesley Critz George
Encyclopedia
Wesley Critz George was a professor of histology
and embryology
at the medical school
of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
, where he chaired the anatomy department. He was an internationally-recognized researcher on the genetics of race. George is remembered for his 87-page pamphlet, The Biology of the Race Problem, printed for the Commission of the Governor (John Patterson
) of Birmingham, Alabama
, 1962.
George argued for biological race realism, and saved special venom for Frank Boas and his disciples. George used some of the same materials on intelligence tests that Arthur Jensen
and Charles Murray
among others later used as evidence of lower black average intelligence.
Materials from 1944, and preserved at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, document George's theories concerning the genetic basis of racial differences in average intelligence
. There are also letters documenting George's disputes with religious leaders, particularly at the Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
, about racial mixing in churches, and George's disapproval of the liberal tendencies of university president Frank Porter Graham and sociologist Howard W. Odum. After the 1954 Supreme Court Brown v. Board of Education
decision, George's fight against school integration escalated, reaching its height in 1955 - 1957, when George was active in the Patriots of North Carolina and then in the North Carolina Defenders of States' Rights which picked up the anti-integration banner after the Patriots' demise.
George's activities in I. Beverly Lake
's unsuccessful campaign for North Carolina governor are reflected in documents dated 1958 - 1960. George was also interested in race policies in other nations, specifically in Rhodesia
and South Africa
. Among his correspondents in the North Carolina archive are Carleton S. Coon
, James P. Dees, Henry E. Garrett, Luther Hodges, R. Carter Pittman, Carleton Putnam
, Clayton Rand, and Archibald Roosevelt
. The archive also contains a considerable number of letters and other items that George received from individuals and organizations that also viewed race differences in average intelligence to be partly genetic.
Other writings by George relate to academic freedom
; civil rights
; genetics and race; and communism
.
Histology
Histology is the study of the microscopic anatomy of cells and tissues of plants and animals. It is performed by examining cells and tissues commonly by sectioning and staining; followed by examination under a light microscope or electron microscope...
and embryology
Embryology
Embryology is a science which is about the development of an embryo from the fertilization of the ovum to the fetus stage...
at the medical school
Medical school
A medical school is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches medicine. Degree programs offered at medical schools often include Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Philosophy, master's degree, or other post-secondary...
of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
, where he chaired the anatomy department. He was an internationally-recognized researcher on the genetics of race. George is remembered for his 87-page pamphlet, The Biology of the Race Problem, printed for the Commission of the Governor (John Patterson
John Malcolm Patterson
John Malcolm Patterson is an American politician who was the 44th Governor of Alabama, from 1959 to 1963. Previously he served as State Attorney General ....
) of Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, 1962.
George argued for biological race realism, and saved special venom for Frank Boas and his disciples. George used some of the same materials on intelligence tests that Arthur Jensen
Arthur Jensen
Arthur Robert Jensen is a Professor Emeritus of educational psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. Jensen is known for his work in psychometrics and differential psychology, which is concerned with how and why individuals differ behaviorally from one another.He is a major proponent...
and Charles Murray
Charles Murray (author)
Charles Alan Murray is an American libertarian political scientist, author, columnist, and pundit working as a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank in Washington, DC...
among others later used as evidence of lower black average intelligence.
Materials from 1944, and preserved at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, document George's theories concerning the genetic basis of racial differences in average intelligence
Race and intelligence
The connection between race and intelligence has been a subject of debate in both popular science and academic research since the inception of intelligence testing in the early 20th century...
. There are also letters documenting George's disputes with religious leaders, particularly at the Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Chapel Hill is a town in Orange County, North Carolina, United States and the home of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and UNC Health Care...
, about racial mixing in churches, and George's disapproval of the liberal tendencies of university president Frank Porter Graham and sociologist Howard W. Odum. After the 1954 Supreme Court Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 347 U.S. 483 , was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court that declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students unconstitutional. The decision overturned the Plessy v. Ferguson decision of 1896 which...
decision, George's fight against school integration escalated, reaching its height in 1955 - 1957, when George was active in the Patriots of North Carolina and then in the North Carolina Defenders of States' Rights which picked up the anti-integration banner after the Patriots' demise.
George's activities in I. Beverly Lake
I. Beverly Lake
I. Beverly Lake, Jr. is an American jurist and public official, who served as chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court....
's unsuccessful campaign for North Carolina governor are reflected in documents dated 1958 - 1960. George was also interested in race policies in other nations, specifically in Rhodesia
Rhodesia
Rhodesia , officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state located in southern Africa that existed between 1965 and 1979 following its Unilateral Declaration of Independence from the United Kingdom on 11 November 1965...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Among his correspondents in the North Carolina archive are Carleton S. Coon
Carleton S. Coon
Carleton Stevens Coon, was an American physical anthropologist, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania, lecturer and professor at Harvard, and president of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists.-Biography:Carleton Coon was born in Wakefield, Massachusetts to a...
, James P. Dees, Henry E. Garrett, Luther Hodges, R. Carter Pittman, Carleton Putnam
Carleton Putnam
Carleton Putnam b. 19 Dec 1901 in New York City, New York, USA; d. 5 Mar 1998: was an American airline pioneer, writer, and biographer. He was educated at Princeton and Columbia University. He was a founder and president of Chicago & Southern Airlines, which was merged with Delta Air Lines. He was...
, Clayton Rand, and Archibald Roosevelt
Archibald Roosevelt
Archibald Bulloch "Archie" Roosevelt , the fifth child of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, was a distinguished U.S. Army officer and commander of U.S. forces in both World War I and II. In both conflicts he was wounded. He earned the Croix de guerre and Silver Star with Oak Leaf Cluster,...
. The archive also contains a considerable number of letters and other items that George received from individuals and organizations that also viewed race differences in average intelligence to be partly genetic.
Other writings by George relate to academic freedom
Academic freedom
Academic freedom is the belief that the freedom of inquiry by students and faculty members is essential to the mission of the academy, and that scholars should have freedom to teach or communicate ideas or facts without being targeted for repression, job loss, or imprisonment.Academic freedom is a...
; civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
; genetics and race; and communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
.