Tag Archives: Smithsonian

POST 1 – Unraveling the Genetic History of a First Nations People – David Loti

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/mapping-history-first-nations-people-through-their-genes-180968899/

Visited 5 September 5 2018

Ryan P. Smith reports on Emory University genetic anthropologist John Lindo’s examination of the genetic history of Tsimshian DNA of Prince Rupert Harbour, Canada:

“the population of the ancient Tsimshian people was in decline long before the arrival of Europeans. Slowly and steadily, since their first settlement in modern Canada, the Tsimshian had been decreasing in number, not expanding as one might presume . . . all Native American peoples have their own stories to tell, and academics do a disservice when they proffer sweeping assertions.”

In short, this is an example of an Indigenous people who were in decline before the arrival of Europeans, which indicates the complexity of teaching historic narratives.