STUART DERDEYN
More from Stuart Derdeyn
Published on: January 28, 2017 | Last Updated: January 28, 2017 7:12 AM PST
Dirtsong
(part of PuSh Festival)
Feb. 4, 8 p.m. | Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Tickets and info: $25-$45, at Ticketfly.com
In September 2016, DNA testing results reported from a University of Copenhagen study lead by evolutionary geneticist Eske Willerslev proved Aboriginal Australians are the oldest continuous civilization on Earth.
Tests of modern populations in Australia and Papua New Guinea revealed an unbroken civilization over 50,000 years old. These findings corroborated oral histories recounting ancestors leaving Africa and migrating some 75,000 years ago, around 25,000 years earlier than those who would settle in Europe, Asia and the Americas.
Sometimes it pays to ask. You might learn something.
“The truth is that in everyday life in modern Australia, you don’t hear much of anything about Aboriginals, or indigenous culture, in mainstream news media,” said Fred Leone of Black Arm Band, which is presenting the show.
“You mainly hear the negatives in terms of culture. So we came together to play a part in the need for there to be a dialogue moving forward about our cultures.”
http://vancouversun.com/entertainment/festivals/dirtsong-speaks-about-aboriginal-australia-with-individual-and-collective-truths
