culture | 7 december 2017
'I am hopeful' is the first of a new series of 'one takes', featuring the talented and insightful trinity thompson-browne. We'll be getting her take on a range of issues with a particular focus on māori - all in one take. Take it away Trinity!
Treaty, treaty, treating me and my people as if we,
had rights and privileges protected, a space for our
rangatiratanga to be accepted within aukati don’t cross this line
and expect it to be raumati and rainbows, rain flows from the
sky to wash away the blood split at Parihaka, e minaka ana kia
patua te Māori, time and time again our tikanga descrated as
unholy, lo and behold me, the face of my tīpuna ignorant of
too many atrocities committed on this land, understand that I am
confused.
Why did I learn about Henry the 8th and his 4 wives before I
learnt about how many of my people lost their lives to
colonisation? Why did I learn about New Zealand’s great
depression before I learnt that my people’s heads were once
bounties for collection? Why did I learn about every other
nations’ war when we have our own collecting dust right at the
front door? Nevertheless I know now what I had ought to long
before and I take it as a blessing to have learnt it at all. So
many New Zealanders don’t know our own lore — we
celebrate Guy Fawkes and Halloween but call Matariki a chore
and the founding of Aotearoa a yawn and a bore. Stealing the
skin of another nation’s tradition, grafting it onto the flesh of
our own nation’s omission in history, please help me, I am
questioning.
Lands of my warrior ancestors aggressively seized by the
Crown, then sold into private ownership with no ability to
account, recount or restore, the lands of my people who bore
the brunt of Crown brutality, calling us savage while savagely
stripping our existence down, parading our shortcomings
like prisoners of war through town. We’re building back up
though; take note. We’re not gonna stop just cause Māori Party
didn’t get enough party votes. Take note; our people are
creative masters, society allots masters in paper but it’s alloted
in our genes, we need no qualification to qualify our innovation
through Ao Pākehā means, we come in countless varieties of
genius. Take note. I am hopeful.
Where to now? The future’s awaiting; tomorrow on the edge of
its seat bating breath at the breadth of possibility, e oho Ngāi
Māori there’s opportunity abounding in all these postsettlement
packages, lets make a bid to remove these old
bandages, ahakoa he iti, he pounamu, we have enough
repatriated to start anew, ten years down the track we’ll be on
the move, up and up eyes cast on distant hues. I’m imagining
better and never settling for lesser and casting caution to the
wind cause we’re here to be the trendsetters, go-getters
and there, won't be no stopping us now, we'll be kai runga rā in the clouds,
standing here to make our people proud. I am hopeful.
Links:
Trinity Thompson-Browne: Website
Grams:
Trinity Thompson-Browne: @trin_tb
Hashies:
#iamhopeful #onetake #treatytreaty #maori #spokenword #views #people #opinions #feature #perspective #maori #viewpoint #everyday #portrait #trinitythomsonbrowne #understanding #differences #inspiration #wellington #newzealand #loandbehold #loandbehold.nz
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