3147.0: Monday, November 13, 2000 - 2:35 PM

Abstract #16738

The history and politics of racial/ethnic classification in relation to medicine and public health

Evelynn M. Hammonds, PhD, History of Science, Program in Science, Technology, and Society, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, E51-296A, 77 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, 617/253-8780, eveham@mit.edu

This paper will address the history of the use of racial classifications in public health through an examination of the work of Raymond Pearl (1879-1940). Pearl was professor of biometry and vital statistics at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health from 1918 to his death. He was influential in developing modern statistical approaches to the problems of public health. This paper will discuss Pearl's work in the use of racial categories in public health during the 1920s and the influence of his views on the field up to the present

Learning Objectives: Develop an understanding of the implications of checking multiple race/ethnicity categories in the 2000 census for public health data

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

The 128th Annual Meeting of APHA