Abstract
Race and ethnicity are historically determined systems of human classification that originated in the premodern era to distinguish natives from foreigners. For centuries, scientists characterized race and ethnicity in ways that supported systems of hierarchy and discrimination such as slavery. After eugenic Nazism was exposed in the twentieth century, scientists attempted to replace “race” with “population,” and to introduce the notion of clinal variation. Though experts now agree that race and ethnicity are social constructs, a genetic debate over their innate dimensions has emerged. Some offer race-based medicine and commercial products as a solution to the persisting problem of racial health disparities.