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Boas et al & New Right
John Cole. (jrc@TEI.UMASS.EDU)
Mon, 25 Mar 1996 18:22:33 -0500
This week's *Nation* (April 8) has an excellent article by Micaela di
Leonardo: "Patterns of Culture Wars; The Right's Attack on 'Cultural
Relativism' as Synecdoche for all that ails us" (pp 25-29). Oddly, Freeman vs.
Mead has popped up as a thread on SKEPTICS-L in re: a new stage play about how
the AAA persecuted Freeman for criticizing relativism..... (The latter a new
play --no author or title given-- in Australia which someone from Oz was
asking for comment on. )
In any case, I found the Nation article very interesting (perhaps because it
confirms my readings of things?!). di Leonardo leads off her piece with an
Eliot parody: "In the public sphere, the New Right's having hissy fits,
Talking of Boas and Mead and Herskovits."
Boas would love the fact that he is still giving conservatives nightmares, but
this really IS a peculiar and ongoing --what? trend?? Theme?
This past Fall I received a White Supremacist anti-semitic spam attacking
anthro, Boas, Mead and all the rest of those Jews (sic[k])--at which time I
was off this list; don't mean to revive that possibly dead thread, but it is
interesting who is still being demonized--and in about the same terms as in
1920!
--John R. Cole
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