MY RACISM IS A HUMANISM. A LECTURE. (2013) – Sasha Huber
Until recently, the life and work of Louis Agassiz (1807-1873) have been intentionally embellished. He has mainly been presented as a glaciologist, scientist, and director of academic institutions, both in his country of origin, Switzerland, and in his adopted country, the USA. Louis Agassiz was one of the pioneering thinkers of 19th century’s ‘scientific racism’. He studied enslaved Africans in the places of their suffering, and taught that they were innately and eternally inferior. He advocated strict racial segregation, ethnic cleansing, and government measures to prevent the birth of interracial children. His ideology can be traced right up to the Nazis’ racial theories. In the fictitious lecture, Agassiz attempts to vindicate himself and his theories.