"This book shows clearly how the dead hand of the past may continue to guide the practice of the present as well as of the future. This is why I regard Professor Selden’s book as of such great importance."

–From the Foreword by Ashley Montagu

How could so many of America’s educational, political, and intellectual leaders have advocated such things as institutionalization, segregation, and even sterilization of those with "inferior blood"? How could the racist notion of selective breeding and racial betterment have become an integral part of high school and college biology textbooks?

In this remarkable book, Steven Selden tells the story of the eugenics movement in America during the early decades of the twentieth century. Complete with fascinating archival photographs, Inheriting Shame provides a powerful historical account and refutation of biological determinist ideas. Selden discusses the role played by America’s foremost social theorists and scientists, popular media, and most importantly, the school textbook, in shaping public consciousness regarding the "truth" of biological determinism. Much more than simply an historical overview, Inheriting Shame concludes with a trenchant analysis of contemporary research evidence of the role that inheritance plays in complex human behavior–including traits ranging from Down Syndrome to violent behavior and homosexuality.