What is Race, now?

It was during my third period class when I heard one of the most intriguing statements of the new year. Our class, which commonly gets off topic onto more "fun and relevant" topics, was talking about race. Before we could really get our words in, my teacher claimed that there is no such thing as race. No such thing as race? While I don't believe in attributing  any contrasts or differences onto others based on race, I feel like the teacher, given his or her position of ethos and impressionability should have provided a little more citation than "researchers say...". After all, I think that the message may have stuck on some of the students, and it is tickling me discuss what race really means. 

Race, in my definition, is the key attribute that helps determine the origin of a person. There is nothing more to it. 

A more expert definition of race, seen in the previous link, seems to sum it up as a "social construct", or something invented by people in order to classify and differentiate from people. So what does that leave for people trying to get a firm grip on what race is? I think it is wise to quote the words of one of our own AS teachers, Mr. Lawler, when he said that it is bull that anyone says race is non-existent. And I agree. Race, as a tool for oppression, was one of the ugliest manipulations of human thought. But that doesn't mean that race, as a measure for individuality and identity should be phased out and labeled non-existent, because the history of race in the United States is a troubled one. 

There is one valuable thing that we all receive from our race: agency. People of one race can and always will use their agency in their race to congregate as a community in order to voice opinions and to celebrate traditions. If we were suddenly told there is no such thing as race, are we suddenly expected to dispose of our old cultural traditions that make us unique in order to move into a more harmonious and uniform world? I, and I'm sure more people, don't like that idea.