I recently heard a geneticist on the radio talking about the scientific consensus that there are no categorical genetic differences between races or ethnicities. Those physical characteristics that we ascribe to a particular group are merely cosmetic in nature, he explained, and of very recent origin. Human beings are human beings, he stated unequivocally; and that seemed perfectly reasonable to me.

But then he took it a step further. He suggested that we should stop focusing on racial and ethnic differences and focus instead on our common bond as one species. I think I know where he was coming from in these fractured and divisive times, and I value his scientific objectivity. But at this point in the program, my own inner-critic interrupted the broadcast: “If he’s right, then why did you start the Italian American Theatre of Chicago?” it challenged.