Social Darwinism And You

Application of Social Darwinism:

Social Darwinism, when it was popular, was often used to justify acts which would be seen as immoral today; such exploits as Eugenics programs, ruling through power, slavery and others. Colonialism was seen as inevitable, people saw natives as inferior and more unfit to survive and felt justified in seizing their land, resources and rights.

Social Darwinism was applied in countries' societies too, also providing justification for exploitive economic policies such as companies under paying workers who performed backbreaking labour for the people in higher positions. It also justified big business' refusals to acknowledge labor unions and similar organizations, implying that the rich shouldn't have to donate money to the poor, as they are more unfit to survive in the present world.

It provided justification for Eugenics programs in Europe and America, aimed at exterminating undesirable genes from the population. For example, the American eugenics movement between about 1910-1930, when 24 states passed sterilization laws and Congress passed a law restricting immigration from certain areas which were seen as "unfit".

Spencer in Social Darwinism:

Herbert Spencer, said to be the father of Social Darwinism as an ethical theory had his own elitist philosophies before Darwin published his theory. Spencer quickly adapted Darwinian ideas to his own ethical theories. The concept of adaptation allowed him to claim that the rich and powerful were better adapted to survive in the social and economic climate of the time. He argued that it was natural, normal, and proper for the strong to thrive at the expense of the weak, because, he claimed, that is what happens in nature every day.

Overview of Social Darwinism:

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