“There is no greater misfortune that a person can suffer than dehumanization as it is a precursor to murder.”[1]
We do not have to look far to witness the dehumanising effects of continuing Israeli aggression towards Palestinians. The rising sentiment against what is considered by many to be genocide is difficult to ignore as recognised official entities, political leaders and indeed, the groundswell at civil society level across the world protest such blatant oppression towards a defenceless population.
“Amnesty International’s research has found sufficient basis to conclude that Israel has committed and is continuing to commit genocide against Palestinians in the occupied Gaza Strip…” [2]
Amongst this crescendo of protest however, is an insidious momentum to reintroduce eugenics as a definitive marker that facilitates racist – and murderous – ideologies, the most destructive of which is genocide. Other methodologies include ethnic cleansing, depopulation and sterilisation. Hyper-normalisation has seen us become almost immune to the amount of tragedy porn regularly viewed on our screens, so it should come as no surprise when political machinations to desensitise us even further are brazenly publicised:
“The increasing frenzy around immigration seems fueled by the desire to shape the population’s genetic makeup. Elon Musk’s cuts to foreign aid are already leading to increased child mortality and HIV and malaria cases in Africa…
At the heart of all these policies is soft eugenics thinking – the idea that if you take away life-saving healthcare and services from the vulnerable, then you can let nature take its course and only the strong will survive.” [3]
To further illustrate this, we only have to refer to Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric, which is an integral part of his established mantra:
“We’ve got a lot of bad genes in our country right now,” is just the latest in a pattern of eugenic comments the…president has espoused for years…
In December 2023, at a New Hampshire campaign stop, he warned that undocumented immigrants were “poisoning the blood of our country.” Four years ago, he told a lily-white crowd of Minnesotans, “You have good genes, you know that, right? You have good genes. A lot of it is about the genes, isn’t it, don’t you believe?” He has been spouting this nonsense for decades.” [4]
Trump’s public advocacy for such reprehensible race science on a national level is unfortunately gathering momentum, primarily among his supporters. With Elon Musk wielding a disconcerting degree of influence on the president to the extent of supporting so-called white South African asylum seekers’ emigration to the US, this racist agenda has extended internationally, galvanizing others, like Benjamin Netanyahu to entrench their own nihilistic strategies across the occupied territories such as Gaza. This was made emphatically clear during the latter’s visit to Trump on 4th February 2025 with an announcement that resulted in international outrage:
“Trump and Netanyahu’s meeting was not just a diplomatic exchange – it cemented a dangerous alliance that prioritises expansionism over justice. Netanyahu’s eager embrace of this proposal further proves his government’s ruthless agenda, which seeks to erase Palestinian identity and sovereignty under the guise of security and geopolitical strategy.” [5]
The genocidal vision included leveling what remains of Gaza and deporting its residents to Jordan and Egypt. [6] Netanyahu proceeded to praise the US president’s plan in his subsequent meetings:
“Israel’s prime minister has said he is working to make US President Donald Trump’s plan to remove and resettle Gaza’s population “a reality”.
Benjamin Netanyahu said he was cooperating with the US on a “common strategy” for the Palestinian territory…” [7]
It is Anti-Semitism, Jim, but not as we know it – It’s against Arabs…
An important question must be raised at this juncture; Why isn’t the current ongoing (and historic) violence and annihilation of Palestinians considered antisemitic when they comprise of semitic peoples dating back thousands of millennia? After all:
“Semitic people or Semites is a term for an ethnic, cultural or racial group associated with people of the Middle East, including Arabs, Jews, Akkadians and Phoenicians.” [8]
If this definition was to be implemented according to its broader categorisation, would we witness a paradigmatic shift whereby anti-Palestinian sentiment would also be criminalised internationally, and geopolitical solidarity with Palestinians, unanimously recognising an independent Palestinian state, become a tangible reality? The likely answer is no due to the underlying premise that returns to eugenics:
“…the deportations, genocides, massacres, mass displacements, rapes, and pillages of non-European peoples served as the historical foundation for the racial determination of States…” [9]
Additionally,
“Genocide becomes possible only when the national space is closed on foreign bodies within its very frontiers. While the nation-state was still a distant project, genocide and its justification – they do not have a soul, they are not Christian – constitute a project to occupy land through the expulsion of natives, as well as through their identification as other. This othering was naturalized from the start. “Indians” are savages. They are beings in a state of nature, fixed in time, incapable of evolving, timeless, and one with nature.” [10]
Lights, Camera, Action! Ambushing the Narrative of Genocide
Referring once more to the ‘migration’ of white so-called refugees from South Africa to the US, this was preceded by an executive order in February to cut aid to the country due to alleged racial discrimination against the white Afrikaner minority. Incidentally, this is the same minority that formerly governed the country with apartheid, a system of institutionalised racial discrimination and segregation against the majority nonwhite population. Trump’s latest attempt to claim white genocide is as farcical as it is false:
“It was an ambush crafted straight from a reality-TV playbook. The Oval Office meeting with South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, started with exchanges of pleasantries, before Donald Trump said, “turn the lights down” and a video was played to support false claims that white South African farmers are being murdered for their race.” [11]
It is important to not lose sight of a strategy that not only attempts to obfuscate, or detract from current examples of genocide, like in Gaza, but also tries to mask white fragility. Carol Anderson, in her book White Rage, argues that:
“…the trigger for white rage, inevitably, is black advancement. It is not the mere presence of black people that is the problem; rather, it is blackness with ambition, with drive, with purpose, with aspirations, and with demands for full and equal citizenship. It is blackness that refuses to accept subjugation, to give up.” [12]
Never again? Historic & Selective Amnesia
The world never previously witnessed the livestreaming of a genocide, until now. The images we see continue to be compared to a not-too-distant past with the horrors that occurred during Nazi occupation of Germany. However, such comparisons have been dismissed. What we are witnessing now is apparently not even remotely similar and woe to anyone attempting to compare and/or conflate the two.
Occasionally, we become aware of particular types of traumas being attributed to specific groups or communities, and while they are legitimate, this does not preclude or delegitimise others whose suffering and oppression practically mirrors these entities. That does not diminish or dilute the respective realities and traumas of such groups; instead, these more recent and existing examples should serve as reminders of the past and the necessity to collectively campaign, challenge and unite against such savagery. Unfortunately, we have not arrived at this stage yet. Will we ever?
21st Century Genomics vs Eugenics: Paving a way forward?
In order to stifle and possibly counter the hegemonic intent behind resurgent eugenics, it is important to become aware of medical advancements and developments in the field of genomics. Genomics is the study of an organism’s entire genome. Unlike genetics, which focuses on individual traits, genomics examines the complete set of an individual’s DNA. In healthcare, it is studied to diagnose and subsequently develop treatments for genetic dispositions.[13]
Community focused, grassroot awareness programmes and collaboration with healthcare institutions could provide opportunities for proactive and insightful engagement, thereby removing the risk of former top-down targeted approaches where participants were confined to recipient, guinea pig status, (refer to the Tuskegee study and its devastating impact on participants.[14]) The Tuskegee study does not directly relate to genomics but has been referenced to highlight former hierarchical statutory targeting of some ethnic communities.
My organisation, STRAP Consultancy[15], recently collaborated on an awareness research programme to provide community members the opportunity to participate and contribute towards the Generation Study, a large-scale study aiming to screen 100,000 babies for more than 200 rare genetic conditions. The research was designed by STRAP using its innovative PAVE (Peer Audio Visual Engagement) framework that was tailored to facilitate participant engagement where challenging questions and discussions were fostered.
Participants remarked on the awareness and learning they had experienced, highlighting the uniqueness – and community sense of ownership they felt – particularly considering the grassroots basis of the research. The medical scepticism among many communities was palpable; pre and post covid experiences further exacerbated existing concerns. This is why, to reiterate, a different approach in this sensitive area is required. Community awareness, activism – and leadership – are vital to avoid a repeat of what many were subjected to historically.
Conclusion: Hurt People, hurt people.
The Muslim world has welcomed the holy month of Dhul Hijjah in which millions will perform Hajj/pilgrimage. Around the globe, all will reflect on and commemorate the final prophetic sermon delivered over 14 centuries ago that possibly resonates more today than previously. An excerpt illustrates its timelessness:
“All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a White has no superiority over a Black nor a Black has any superiority over a White except by piety and good action…” [16]
Unfortunately, the above exhortation will be of little to no effect to those effectively blinded – and somewhat intoxicated – through their own ideological stratagem of bigotry, hatred and xenophobia towards a people who, once upon a time, welcomed them onto their land. A poignant end to this article is Robin DiAngelo’s observation:
“To put it bluntly, I believe that the white collective fundamentally hates blackness for what it reminds us of: that we are capable and guilty of perpetrating immeasurable harm and that our gains come through the subjugation of others.” [17]
[1] The ‘Negro’ in Arab-Muslim Consciousness: Second Edition by Abdullah Ali: https://read.amazon.co.uk/kp/kshare?asin=B0DJWTPCNM&id=t2yo7wwywfgrbejzruf3i6int4
[2] Amnesty International Investigation Concludes Israel is Committing Genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, Amnesty International, 5th December 2024: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/12/amnesty-international-concludes-israel-is-committing-genocide-against-palestinians-in-gaza/
[3] Beres, D: ‘MAGA’s era of ‘soft eugenics’: Let the weak get sick, help the clever breed’, The Guardian, 4th May 2025: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2025/may/04/maga-soft-eugenics?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
[4] Caplan, A & Tabery, J: ‘Donald Trump wants to make Eugenics Great Again. Let’s Not’, Scientific American, 17th October 2024: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/donald-trump-wants-to-make-eugenics-great-again-lets-not/
[5] DiEM25: ‘DiEM25 condemns Trump and Netanyahu’s sinister plan for Gaza’, DiEM25 Publications, 5th February 2025: https://diem25.org/diem25-condemns-trump-and-netanyahus-sinister-plan-for-gaza/
[6] Ibid
[7] Aikman, I & Davies, M: ‘Netanyahu praises Trump’s ‘bold vision’ for Gaza at Rubio meeting’, BBC News, 17th February 2025: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cz9eddnnq4go
[8] Wikipedia: Semitic people: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semitic_people
[9] Rednecks and Barbarians: Uniting the White and Racialized Working Class by Houria Bouteldja
https://read.amazon.co.uk/kp/kshare?asin=B0D75JPCZT&id=wijvkjyifzfujnetoa5kqwjhii
[10] Ibid
[11] Savage, R: ‘Trump’s ‘white genocide’ claims ignore the reality of life and crime in South Africa’, The Guardian, 21st May 2025: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/may/21/trump-south-african-president-meeting
[12] Excerpt taken from DiAngelo, R: ‘White Fragility: Why it’s so hard for White People to Talk about Racism’,
[13] Genomics: https://www.google.com/search?q=genomics&oq=genomics&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyDAgAEEUYORixAxiABDIMCAEQIxgnGIAEGIoFMgcIAhAAGIAEMgcIAxAAGIAEMgcIBBAAGIAEMgYIBRBFGD0yBggGEEUYPTIGCAcQRRg90gEINTUxM2owajeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#cobssid=s
[14] CDC: ‘The Untreated Syphilis Study at Tuskegee Timeline’, CDC, 4th September 2024: https://www.cdc.gov/tuskegee/about/timeline.html
[15] Strategic, Tactical, Regional Alliance & Partnership: https://www.strapconsultancy.com/
[16] Prophet Muhammad’s Farewell Sermon: https://www.iium.edu.my/deed/articles/thelastsermon.html
[17] DiAngelo, R: ‘White Fragility: Why it’s so hard for White People to Talk about Racism’
