This website introduces students to the history of race science and the international eugenics movement. Throughout the 19th century, European and North American thinkers frequently used scientific authority to define human differences in terms of racially superior and inferior traits. In the early 20th century the eugenics movement emerged out of this history. Eugenics advocates believed they could "purify society" by eliminating so-called inferior racial traits and enhancing those traits considered superior.

The eugenics movement flourished in numerous countries but was particularly strong in the United States and Germany. In both of these countries eugenics had a major impact on public policies and human lives. In the United States sterilization laws and immigration restriction policies were some of the most notable effects of the movement. In Germany eugenics was taken to a much more lethal level and figured into the racial policies that led to the Holocaust.

This website allows students and teachers to actively explore a difficult and often forgotten chapter in history. We begin with activities on identity and membership, drawing examples from different countries in the world from both today and in the 18th and 19th centuries. The website then provides options to explore either or both case studies from the American and German eugenics movements.* These case studies raise important ethical and civic questions for how we confront our own past and think about our responsibilities today.

The content in this website draws from our resource books, Race and Membership in American History: The Eugenics Movement and Facing History and Ourselves: Holocaust and Human Behavior. Additionally, there are numerous links to other resources that help students understand different aspects of this history. Through interactive activities and individualized learning paths teachers are able to craft dynamic and student-centered lessons.

* During the 2006-2007 academic year we will be enhancing the website by adding more material to the "Eugenics in Germany" section.



	Website Overview
	This website introduces students to the history of race science and the international eugenics movement. Throughout the 19th century, European and North American thinkers frequently used scientific authority to define human differences in terms of racially superior and inferior traits. In the early 20th century the eugenics movement emerged out of this history. Eugenics advocates believed they could "purify society" by eliminating so-called inferior racial traits and enhancing those traits considered superior. The eugenics movement flourished in numerous countries but was particularly strong in the United States and Germany. In both of these countries eugenics had a major impact on public policies and human lives. In the United States sterilization laws and immigration restriction policies were some of the most notable effects of the movement. In Germany eugenics was taken to a much more lethal level and figured into the racial policies that led to the Holocaust. This website allows students and teachers to actively explore a difficult and often forgotten chapter in history. We begin with activities on identity and membership, drawing examples from different countries in the world from both today and in the 18th and 19th centuries. The website then provides options to explore either or both case studies from the American and German eugenics movements.* These case studies raise important ethical and civic questions for how we confront our own past and think about our responsibilities today. The content in this website draws from our resource books, Race and Membership in American History: The Eugenics Movement and Facing History and Ourselves: Holocaust and Human Behavior. Additionally, there are numerous links to other resources that help students understand different aspects of this history. Through interactive activities and individualized learning paths teachers are able to craft dynamic and student-centered lessons. * During the 2006-2007 academic year we will be enhancing the website by adding more material to the "Eugenics in Germany" section. Copyright ©2002-2010 Facing History and Ourselves