Franz Boas (1858-1942) was a German born American Anthropologist. He spent a lot of his career fighting against and working to deconstruct scientific racism. He was one of first to challenge the classification of human variation. He also took on a lot of minority students, both students of color and women, encouraging them in their projects. However, Boas did not always seem to grasp the of the lives of those he worked with who were trying to be scholars and to be activists for their people. And he wasn't always willing to collaborate with others (especially women) who challenged his ideas. However, Boas produced many well-known anthropologists who continued to carry on his ideas and legacy. 