Indigenous DNA no proof of Indigenous identity, says Native studies scholar
Elizabeth Warren’s claim to Native ancestry is just one more attempt by settlers to define race, says U of A’s Kim TallBear.
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Elizabeth Warren’s claim to Native ancestry is just one more attempt by settlers to define race, says U of A’s Kim TallBear.
In 2014, Ralph Taylor applied to have his insurance company in Washington State certified as a “disadvantaged business enterprise.” The DBE program at the U.S. Department of Transportation was originally designed to help minority- and woman-owned businesses win government contracts. So as proof of his minority status, Taylor submitted the results of a DNA test, [...]
THIS WEEK // Survey says: We opine on a poll asking Canadians what they think should be done regarding Indigenous peoples. Statistically insignificant: The auditor general does a number on the federal government's glaring gaps in data for First Nations reserves. Doggone DNA: Think you can trust those genetic tests that tell you how 'Indian' you are? Guess you missed that recent story of a lab that verified the tribal ancestry of a chihuahua! Joining Rick Harp at the roundtable once again are Candis Callison, associate professor at UBC's Graduate School of Journalism, and Kim TallBear, associate professor of Native Studies at the University of Alberta. // Our theme is 'nesting' by birocratic.
Even in a credible DNA lab, there are problems using tests to determine Indigenous affiliation, Kim TallBear says. (Courtesy Kim TallBear)
Can a DNA test actually tell you anything about your heritage? And why some ancestries -- like Indigenous and Metis -- are especially hard to tease out.
This episode will conclude our series on the social life of DNA. First, on BiteSize Science (6.02min), we chat about Atlantic staff writer Ed Yong’s two-year mission to fix the gender imbalance in his writing. Our main story then follows Dr. Lynn Gehl(7.35min), an Algonquin-Anishinaabe woman from Eastern Ontario who just last April won [...]
Her 11,500-year-old remains suggest that all Native Americans can trace their ancestry to the same founding population.
With the advent of modern DNA tests, people can now find out their genetic makeup within days. For many the tests can help strengthen a sense of heritage and ancestry. But according to indigenous scholar Kim TallBear, a specialist in racial politics in science, the results of a DNA test do not give people a license to adopt or claim membership to a Native American community.