Heidi Mirza joins this week's RI debate - What does science tell us about race and racism?

A leading Goldsmiths, University of London academic is taking part in a debate on race and science at the prestigious Royal Institution.

Heidi Mirza, Professor of Race, Faith and Culture in the Department of Sociology, will speak as part of an event exploring whether science can help unpick the subject of race.

The event entitled “What does science tell us about race and racism” takes place from 7pm to 8.30pm on 19 November at the Royal Institution’s The Theatre space.

Professor Mirza will tackle this question as part of a panel chaired by writer and broadcaster Adam Rutherford.

Also on the panel are Professor Aoife McLysaght, from the Molecular Evolution Lab at the Smurfit Institute of Genetics, Trinity College Dublin, Professor Richard Crisp, from the Department of Psychology at the Aston Business School and Director of the Aston Behavioural Science Laboratory and writer and broadcaster Kenan Malik.

Speaking ahead of the debate, Professor Mirza said: “Science has a long and tangled history with race. For over 200 years colonial fictions about hierarchies of racial inferiorly were deemed scientific fact.

However advances in genetic science now show we are 99.9% the same under our skin. If there is no such thing as ‘race’ why does the pernicious legacy of racism persist in our societies?

“My sociological research on race, gender and educational inequalities shows how old mythologies of racial difference still pervade our everyday common sense ideas about ‘them and us’.”

The Royal Institution has been a global leader in the advancement of science since its foundation in March 1799.

From its grand home at Albemarle Street in central London, iconic figures such as Michael Faraday have pioneered scientific discovery at the Royal Institution. Some 15 scientists attached to the body have won the Nobel Prize - while breakthroughs recorded there include the discovery of 10 elements and the invention of the electric generator.

More details of the event and booking information can be found on the Royal Institution’s website