Darkness in El Dorado

Darkness in El Dorado

Darkness in El Dorado (subtitled: How Scientists and Journalists Devastated the Amazon) is a book written by investigative journalist Patrick Tierney in 2000 that accuses geneticist James Neel and anthropologist Napoleon Chagnon of exacerbating a measles epidemic among the Yanomamo people and conducting human research without regard for their subjects' wellbeing. It was nominated for a National Book Award. Publication of the book provoked scandal, outrage and public hearings, and has been a source of significant academic controversy. These allegations have also been explored in the recent documentary film Secrets of the Tribe by Brazilian director José Padilha.

Contents

Claims

  • That Napoleon Chagnon and James Neel directly and indirectly caused a genocide in the region through the introduction of a live virus measles vaccine.
  • That the whole Yanomami project was an outgrowth and continuation of the Atomic Energy Commission's secret program of experiments on human subjects.
  • That Chagnon's account of the Yanomami are based on false, non-existent or misinterpreted data, and that Chagnon actually incited violence among them.
  • That French researcher Jacques Lizot, protégé of anthropology icon Claude Lévi-Strauss, made prostitution a way of life for young Yanomami boys.
  • That Kenneth Good married a Yanomami girl who was barely entering her teens.

Investigation

The American Anthropological Association has since made stern statements concerning the proper conduct for anthropologists in the field. The book was examined and many of Tierney's claims challenged by various panels of historians, epidemiologists, anthropologists, and filmmakers who had direct knowledge of the events soon after its publication.

A detailed investigation of these charges by a panel set up by the University of Michigan found the most serious charges to have no foundation and others to have been exaggerated. Sponsel and Turner, the two scientists who originally touted the book's claims, admitted that their charge against Neel "remains an inference in the present state of our knowledge: there is no 'smoking gun' in the form of a written text or recorded speech by Neel."[1]

References

  1. ^ John Tooby, "Jungle Fever: Did two US scientists start a genocidal epidemic in the Amazon or was The New Yorker duped? Slate, October 24th, 2000.

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Living in Darkness — Infobox Album | Name = Living in Darkness Type = Album Artist = Agent Orange Released = 1981 Recorded = 1979 September 1981 Genre = Surf rock, punk rock Length = 19:53 (original) 44:46 (reissue) Label = Posh Boy Records Producer = Daniel… …   Wikipedia

  • El Dorado — ( Spanish for the golden one ) is a legend that began with the story of a South American tribal chief who covered himself with gold dust and would dive into a lake of pure mountain water.The legend began in the 1530s, in the Andes of present day… …   Wikipedia

  • Napoleon Chagnon — Napoleon A. Chagnon (  /ˈʃæɡ …   Wikipedia

  • Davi Kopenawa Yanomami — Davi Kopenawa Yanomami, name also written Davi Kobenawä Yanomamö (born Toototobi, Brazil, circa 1956) is a shaman and Portuguese speaking spokesperson of the Yanomami Indians in Brazil. He came to international prominence for this advocacy… …   Wikipedia

  • Haximu massacre — The Haximu Massacre, also known as the Yanomami Massacre, was an armed conflict in Brazil in 1993. The conflict occurred just outside of Haximu, Brazil, near the Venezuela border, beginning in mid June [Ferguson, Brian R., Yanomami Warfare (USA:… …   Wikipedia

  • List of controversial non-fiction books — This is a list of controversial non fiction books aimed at the general reader which discuss controversial issues, or have been (or were at the time of writing) discussed for other reasons. For controversial fictional books, see list of banned… …   Wikipedia

  • James V. Neel — James Van Gundia Neel (March 22, 1915 ndash; February 1, 2000) was a geneticist who played a key role in the development of human genetics as a field of research in the United States. He made important contributions to the emergence of genetic… …   Wikipedia

  • Ya̧nomamö — ethnic group group=Ya̧nomamö caption=Ya̧nomamö children poptime= popplace=Venezuela, Brazil rels=shamanism langs=Yanomaman languages related=The Ya̧nomamö are a large population of native people in South America. They reside in the Amazon… …   Wikipedia

  • Charles Brewer-Carías — (* 1938 in Caracas) ist ein venezolanischer Naturforscher und Entdecker, der aufgrund seiner zahlreichen Expeditionen und wissenschaftlichen Arbeiten über die Natur Venezuelas internationale Bekanntheit erlangt hat. Nach ihm sind mehr als 20 Tier …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • American Anthropological Association — Founded in 1902, the American Anthropological Association (AAA) is the world’s largest professional organization of scholars and practitioners in the field of anthropology. With 11,000 members, the Arlington, Virginia based association includes… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”