“At face value, [criticisms are] a dispute about historical ‘facts’ and the source, use and interpretation of evidence. But of course, given the popularity of both Pascoe and Dark Emu, and the widespread historical illiteracy regarding Australia’s First Nations people, much more is at stake. The destructive grip of the culture wars – in which critique frequently becomes denigration, public shaming or abuse – makes it difficult for us to grasp this moment for what it truly is: an opportunity to deepen Australians’ knowledge of our Indigenous cultures.” — Mark McKenna
I believe that this is a very valuable read. I did not check the citations and I am aware that there exist refutations to some of the claims in this book. That being said, when I read this book, I allowed myself to imagine that every claim of his was true. Through doing this, I was able to fully embrace the message of the book. Pascoe’s vision became my vision and I understood the frustration of this battle.
I have spent a bit of time researching the response to this book, as can be seen in the citations below, and acknowledge the criticisms of exagerration. However, in seventeen years of mandatory Australian schooling and many of those years including an education on the First Nations People, not one of those years included a shred of information about the sophistication of the First Nations Peoples of Australia. They completely comprised of a history of colonisation and details of how the First Nations Peoples were mistreated. Whilst these details are necessary, it never even bothered to refute terra nullius or detail the rich lives of the First Nations Peoples of Australia. Dark Emu provided me with a new perspective of the original custodians of the land that I live on.