Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Domnina & Shabalin's OD - Aboriginal Theme

Which group of Aboriginals are they trying to portray in that dance? If they are generalizing, which Linichuk just admitted, then that's where the problem begins. That sounds more like a mixture of moves and gestures thrown together to create an "aboriginal" dance.

Which group of Aboriginals are being "honoured?" All? Impossible. There are so many aboriginal groups all over the 7 continents, each with their own spiritual beliefs, customs and culture. Again, generalizing is the problem.

Based on what I've learned in Canadian history classes from the elementary to the post-secondary level is that some Canadian aboriginal groups dance for a spiritual purpose. Sometimes it's to honour a god who helped a tribe win a battle in war, or it's to ask for blessings on the young men of the tribe before they go off on a hunting expedition. These dances are sacred. For Domnina and Shabalin to display a gernalized "aboriginal" dance shows how ignorant they are. The very simple fact that they are doing an aboriginal dance without any understanding of the spiritual foundation of these dances is an offence.

They didn't intend to offend? They did.

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