Final answer:
Genetic drift does cause Hardy-Weinberg disequilibrium because it leads to random changes in allele frequencies, thereby violating the constant allele frequency principle of the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that genetic drift does not cause Hardy-Weinberg (HW) disequilibrium but does violate HW principles and change allele frequencies is false. Genetic drift does indeed cause HW disequilibrium because it changes allele frequencies through random fluctuations, which is a violation of the HW principle stating that allele frequencies should remain constant in the absence of evolutionary forces. The Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium is based on the concept that, in a non-evolving population where no evolutionary forces such as natural selection, mutation, genetic drift, and migration are at play, allele, and genotype frequencies will remain stable across generations. However, natural populations are seldom in this equilibrium due to these evolutionary forces continuously acting on them. Genetic drift, often illustrated by the founder effect or bottlenecks, can significantly alter the genetic makeup of a population, particularly in small populations where chance events can have a large impact on allele frequencies.