IBG Statement in Response to the Buffalo Shooting
- We, the members of the Institute for Behavioral Genetics, denounce the racist violence and horror perpetrated on May 14, 2022, in Buffalo, NY, where the murderer made racist claims and misrepresented science, including the genetic basis of behaviors and intelligence. Such violence is never justifiable under any circumstances.
- More generally, we acknowledge and strongly condemn the historic and ongoing misuse of psychological and genetic research to justify racist and ableist policies and practices. The intentional misuse and politicization of science is never justified, but especially when used to support violent acts.
- As behavioral geneticists, we have a responsibility to:
- Be aware of the history of misuses of science and the abuses of racist ideas and policies.
- Be vigilant against abuses and misuses of psychological and genetic research in the future, and reject misrepresentations and distortions of psychological and genetic research.
- Acknowledge the need for experts in the field to engage with the broader public to communicate effectively, educate the public of the field鈥檚 findings, and explain why misuse is antithetical to our values and the science of behavioral genetics.
- To those ends, the IBG Diversity, Equity and Inclusion committee has actively been working on statements to counter misrepresentations of behavioral genetics findings and to explain how behavioral genetics findings, properly interpreted, can benefit society and public health. These will be posted on our website in the near future.
- We recognize that statements only go so far. To that end, we are actively working to develop and improve education in behavioral genetics and, in particular, to counter misrepresentations.
- For more information about genetics and human diversity, see .
- For those wanting to help, the Buffalo community has organized a to support victims and their families.