University Professor: White Marble Statues Creates White Supremacy Attitudes

Just because persons achieve advanced academic degrees does not mean what they have to say has to make sense. Or that their theories are even remotely sound. And in the highly politicized world of higher education, holding a professorship is no guarantee either of quality scholarship, or of the development of ideas that are of benefit to anyone.

When a professor states that ancient statues that were carved from white stones promote white supremacy, you can be sure that quality scholarship has been jettisoned.

A professor at The University of Iowa said appreciation of “white marble” used in classical artwork has created “white supremacist ideas today.”

Professor Sarah Bond indicated in a Hyperallergic article that “many of the statues, reliefs, and sarcophagi created in the ancient Western world were in fact painted,” and the “white marble” used in artwork were meant to be colored.

Bond also said that  “the equation of white marble with beauty is not an inherent truth of the universe,” and therefore is “a dangerous construct that continues to influence white supremacist ideas today.”

The professor also argues that  “most museums and art history textbooks contain a predominantly neon white display of skin tone,” which “has an impact on the way we view the antique world.”

It’s unfortunate that Professor Bond has so much time on her hands that she can propagate such stupid theories. This is not scholarship designed to educate or expand the frontiers of knowledge. It’s just a plunge into identity politics thinly disguised as scholarship.

“The assemblage of neon whiteness serves to create a false idea of homogeneity — everyone was very white! — across the Mediterranean region,” she said, later saying that the misapprehensions of the classical era give “further ammunition for white supremacists today, including groups like Identity Europa, who use classical statuary as a symbol of white male superiority.”

Of all the alleged explanations for racist attitudes that have been proposed, the existence of white marble statutes is a new one.

If the professor is interested in a scholarship, perhaps she should examine the reasons why statues were created from this particular rock in the first place. But then, the result of that inquiry might not support her agenda, so it seems unlikely she will go down that path.

“In any case, let me know if you would like to discuss this issue further.”

Thanks, but that’s okay. More than enough time has been spent on this silliness already.

Source: Turning Point News