Anthropological Society: “There Is No Single Biological Standard” for Male and Female

Now, we have a forensic scientist on staff here at AiG, and as you might imagine, she assures me that is false. There certainly is a “biological standard” for sex—even if you just have a skeleton! So why would this group of scientists make such an anti-scientific claim?

Well, because “There is no place for transphobia in anthropology.” It’s all political! Yes, concerns of “transphobia” when dealing with anthropological remains caused a panel discussion on the skeletal differences between males and females to be canceled (and the organizers assured everyone that better vetting would be done in the future to make sure sessions like this aren’t booked again!). Here’s why the session was canceled, according to Fox News:

“The session was rejected because it [was] framed in ways that do harm to vulnerable members of our community. It commits one of the cardinal sins of scholarship—it assumes the truth of the proposition that it sets out to prove, namely, that sex and gender are simplistically binary, and that this is a fact with meaningful implications for the discipline,” the AAA told FOX News Digital.

It further said that anthropologists should not strive to identify sex conclusively and that such determinations were merely an “estimation.”

“Around the world and throughout human history, there have always been people whose gender roles do not align neatly with their reproductive anatomy. There is no single biological standard by which all humans can be reliably sorted into a binary male/female sex classification,” the AAA continued.

One of the speakers who was scheduled to attend the conference claims that “the field has been nose-diving into an ‘off the rails’ agenda.” She says,

So just as we are getting better and better at identifying what is male and what is a female and the skeletal record, we are getting more and more attacked for knowing how to do this. . . . Truth is not necessarily considered an objective goal and the victims’ narrative is more important than facts. Who tells the story is more important than the data, which we obviously know is not true.

Creationists certainly understand the difference between male and female and understand that it’s not an “estimation” but a statement of biological fact.

It’s interesting that it’s creationists who are often told we can’t do science and that belief in God and the supernatural creation of the cosmos is holding back science . . . but creationists certainly understand the difference between male and female and understand that it’s not an “estimation” but a statement of biological fact. Just as evolution has held back science (e.g., assumptions about “junk” DNA, “vestigial” organs, etc.), the new transgender ideology is holding back science.

You can learn about some of the differences between male and female skeletons in a Discover program at the Creation Museum—taught by our very own forensic scientist, Dr. Jennifer Rivera, who, unlike the American and Canadian anthropological associations, knows “the single biological standard” for determining the biological sex of human remains (you can even book this program, and others, for your private group).

And our new biblical identity exhibit that we’re currently raising funds for as part of our end-of-year campaign will also highlight the definitive, unchanging, and purposeful design of each human as either male or female (yes, our content writers and designers also know “the single biological standard,” as well as the biblical standard, for biological sex). This exhibit is going to be filled with powerful teaching about God’s design of humanity, our true identity as image-bearers of God, and the gospel message. You can help bring this exhibit to life by donating to our end-of-year fundraiser—all gifts are doubled up to $8 million through the end of the year.

Yes, creationists can do science (good science!) because we start with the right foundation—the unchanging truth of God’s Word, not the ever-changing whims of human opinions.

Get More Answers on Answers News

This item was discussed Monday on Answers News with cohosts Dr. Georgia Purdom, Dr. Gabriela Haynes, and Patricia Engler. Answers News is our weekly news program filmed live before a studio audience here at the Creation Museum, broadcast on our Answers in Genesis YouTube channel, and posted to Answers TV. We also covered the following topics:

• What really killed the dinosaurs?
• Are cats “perfect”?
• Christians should not view homosexuality like Andy Stanley does.
• And more!

Be sure to join us each Monday at 2 p.m. (ET) on YouTube or later that day on Answers TV for Answers News. You won’t want to miss this unique news program that gives science and culture news from a distinctly biblical and Christian perspective.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.