Final answer:
The modern concept of race is tied to postmodernism, recognizing it as a social construct rather than a biological fact, influenced by events like World War II, civil rights, and anti-colonial movements.
Step-by-step explanation:
The modern concept of race has evolved in conjunction with the understanding that it is a social construct, rather than an inherent biological reality. This view became prevalent post-World War II and was further propelled by the civil rights movement in the United States and anti-colonial movements globally. The reevaluation of race also coincided with postmodernist thought, which influenced our perceptions and conversations surrounding race and ethnicity.
Notions of race were historically tied to ancestral and familial ties, but have increasingly focused on superficial physical characteristics like skin color. Despite the biological variation among humans being minimal, social constructs of race have deeply influenced legal systems and societal interactions. The consequence of this is that many of our current ideas about race are grounded in socioeconomic factors rather than biological differences. For example, the social construction of skin color is recognized as an adaptive trait to sunlight exposure, rather than a basis for race.