The journal is founded by Aleš Hrdlička, a former lead curator of the Physical Anthropology Collections of the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Hrdlička is a believer in polygenesis, which is the theory that human races originate from different species. He sees eugenics as an "anthropological and medical science" "for the benefit of humankind" that can reveal "the fundamental problems of our own race and humanity" (Blakey, 2020).

Hrdlička will use the journal to further promote a science rooted in ableist and racist ideas. In the early 20th century, the journal features writings by eugenicists like John Harvey Kellogg of the Race Betterment Foundation in Battle Creek, Michigan.