meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Today in Focus

How the University of Edinburgh helped create scientific racism

Today in Focus

The Guardian

Daily News, News

4.65.7K Ratings

🗓️ 11 August 2025

⏱️ 38 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Will the University of Edinburgh confront its dark past? Severin Carrell reports. Help support our independent journalism at theguardian.com/infocus

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

This is The Guardian.

0:08.8

Today, the 400-year-old University of Edinburgh confronts its dark past.

0:27.7

Today in focus is supported by UK for UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.

0:32.6

Do you ever think about how much suffering goes unreported?

0:37.3

And if you don't know, how can you ever choose to do something about it?

0:47.0

Right now, Sudan is experiencing one of the largest and fastest growing humanitarian crises in the world,

0:49.2

but it's not dominating headlines.

0:56.0

Ongoing conflict and violence has forced millions of people to flee their homes, and over 25 million are in urgent need of help, lacking food, water, medicine and shelter.

1:05.0

But there is something we can do.

1:08.0

UNHCR is the UN Refugee Agency and protects people fleeing conflict and persecution around the world.

1:16.6

It has teams on the ground right now in Sudan and in neighboring countries delivering life-saving aid to families searching for safety. They're providing thermal blankets, clean water,

1:31.3

and emergency shelter, and they need your help to keep delivering. Your donation today could make

1:39.3

a massive difference to someone who's been forced to flee their home in Sudan. Search UNHCR Sudan appeal and donate to help deliver vital, life-saving aid and protection to refugees and displaced people. I'm We're standing on the east end of Edinburgh, which is one of the most famous locations in the city.

2:11.6

And what we can see from here is Edinburgh's iconic skyline.

2:16.6

And right in front of us is a huge monument to

2:20.1

Dougal Stewart, one of Edinburgh's most famous moral philosophers. A few weeks ago, the Guardian

2:25.7

Scotland editor Severin Carroll took our producer, Courtney Yusuf, to see one of Edinburgh's

2:30.5

most iconic monuments. It almost looks like it's a shrine.

2:34.3

It's got Greek-style Corinthian columns.

2:36.9

It's got an urn in the centre of it.

2:38.9

And it's actually, funnly enough,

2:39.9

it's also displaying quite a handsome array of weeds growing through the cracks.

...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 20 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Guardian, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of The Guardian and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2025.