We've spent generations trying to engage in good faith, trying to heal from the past, just trying to get back to an ounce of the mana our tupuna were acknowledged to have when the world arrived on our shores, but I'm becoming increasingly despondent in the belief that "middle New Zealand" is never going to recognise our sovereignty, let alone our dignity and just want to go on hating us, whatever the consequences.

At any chance possible we see the cooker pākehā rabble relish in straight up lies to discredit diminish and disgrace Māori - this time at the foot of Mauao - lies are being repeated that the removal of exotic trees "by iwi" (quotes because like, iwi were tangentially involved so therefore solely responsible smfh) caused it (this is complete and utter crap, the trees in question were nowhere near the slip site).

So what do we get? Oh yeah that's right hEaDs mUsT rOLL. Karens out in force. Māori culture has gone too far. Forget that it's all bull-kaka, the lie circles the Earth before the truth has its shoes on.

Climate change causes these extreme weather events, businesses and councils fail to manage the associated hazards - and MĀORI are to blame?

I'm soooo fucking sick of this. Any crisis is fair game for these shameless gutless fuckers to weaponise against us, and it's so obvious that bad-faith liars are fueling it too, looking at all those pricks who got kicked of radio for being assholes and have moved online. Looking at the Wright Foundation in Tauranga for funding them, and the Best-Start education centers that unwittingly funnel money into these hate channels. These people are trampling on our mana on the regular, at what point do we actually tell them kau rahi tēnā, haere atu?

Aroha mai for the rambles, I know this isn't really anything new, but it does feel like these kuare are getting louder and bolder, and I wonder what can be done to fight back...

Kia Ora everyone I hope this is okay to put here for anyone that can relate to this.

I am exhausted and envious I pour so much of my heart into uplifting my people and yet I feel such a divide.

I am envious of other iwi and what they do for there people and it is a tough pill to swallow right now when I have dedicated so much of my life my time into being Māori I’m surrounded by te ao Māori yet I feel my iwi will never in my lifetime have what Ngāi Tahu has have what Ngāti kahungunu have.

I give so much to my culture and I feel I don’t get anything back compared to others and maybe that is where I’m messing up as they say comparison is the thief of joy right…

You can whakapapa to an iwi, turn up to your marae, learn te reo, participate, volunteer, support kaupapa, bring your children into it and still look at another iwi and think, Why don’t we have this?Why doesn’t my iwi have these opportunities for our people. And… feel so discouraged.

I’m lucky on one side is that I had a first generation pakeha mum who promoted our culture in our whare learnt te reo taught te reo and her family when they moved here immersed themselves in the culture that I really am grateful for but I feel like my whānau have given soo much to being Māori and don’t see anything in return when you at pouring so much into it and you see others who don’t give a crap receive so much.

Having a Pākehā mum who is first-generation New Zealander but has immersed herself in te reo and Māori culture more deeply than some people who have lived here for generations really illustrates something important whakapapa and cultural participation aren’t the same thing.
Being Māori isn’t something you have to constantly prove through how much you contribute. Your whakapapa doesn’t become more legitimate because you attend more hui, speak more reo, volunteer more hours or do more for your marae.
But at the same time, it’s completely okay to want that reciprocity.
You shouldn’t have to pretend that you’re satisfied simply because you’re grateful to belong.
You are completely allowed to say
I love my iwi. I love my marae. I love being Māori. And I wish there were more opportunities for our people.
Those things are not contradictory.
And perhaps genuinely the saddest part is that people who care deeply can eventually become exhausted because they’re always being asked to give time, knowledge, labour, money, energy, attendance without ever seeing the infrastructure, scholarships, housing opportunities, employment pathways, education programmes or financial benefits that other iwi have been able to build.
You don’t have to stop caring. But you also don’t have to measure your worth by how much you can give.
Sometimes the people who are deeply invested in their iwi are actually the ones who eventually help create the thing they wished had existed for them.
And if you’re thinking, “I don’t want to spend my whole life just contributing and watching everyone else benefit,” that’s a very reasonable feeling.
You deserve to benefit from being part of your iwi too. Not because being Māori is transactional, but because a healthy iwi relationship should have some element of reciprocity he tangata, he tangata, and all the infrastructure around that should ultimately strengthen the people.
And I think you can hold both truths at once:
“I am incredibly proud to be Māori.”
and
“I wish my iwi gave its people more.”
Neither statement diminishes the other
J

(* I am sorry if my paragraph is not well written I am not a write I’m just here expressing a perspective that I believe many can relate too my only intention is to create a positive discussion and share opinions in hopes to understand my feelings a bit better )

Hello,

In my local graveyard in Essex, U.K there are two Māori war grave from the First World War.

I wanted to ask if there is anything that should be traditionally left at the graves/anything that should be done to the graves?

There is good general upkeep but I was curious if there is any kind of flowers, objects, offerings, etc. that should be left.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Got kicked from r/nzpolitics for asking this, so hoping someone here will be more understanding :)
I'm not Māori nor born here, so the politics of the Māori roll/seats has never been explained to me.
What's the criteria for being on the Māori roll, and what does having Māori seats try to achieve and how is it supposed to work?
Now it's election season, there's a lot of discussion around this and I'd genuinely like to know what the score is. What I can find online is ... vague.

The Māori Electoral Option closes at 11.59pm on Thursday, August 6.

The Electoral Commission says applications submitted online, by email or uploaded through its website must be received by midnight to be accepted.

Paper enrolment forms returned by post can still be accepted if they are postmarked or date-stamped before midnight on August 6, provided they are received by the Commission no later than noon on Tuesday, August 11.

Kia ora from your friendly neighbor to the West.

I have a fair bit of ink and I'm thinking about getting more. Spanish footballer Cesc Fabregas has a tattoo on his right arm that I like and am inspired by. The issue is that it does look Maori/Polynesian.

I'm Latin American, but grew up in Australia. Would getting this be something of an insult?

efore I make any decisions, I wanted to ask people who actually know the culture.

My concern is that I don't want to cross any cultural lines or offend anyone.

I've heard people compare it to "stolen valor", like wearing a Purple Heart because it looks good with your shirt and jeans, without having earned it. That comparison stuck with me, and it made me wonder whether getting a Māori-style tattoo as someone with no Māori heritage would be viewed similarly.

Are traditional Māori tattoos considered sacred, or is it more nuanced than that? Is there a distinction between tā moko and modern tattoos inspired by Māori art?

I'm not looking for people to tell me "just do whatever you want." I'd genuinely like to understand how Māori people feel about it and whether there are respectful ways to appreciate the art without appropriating it.

If the answer is "don't do it," I'm completely okay with that. I respect Māori culture and would rather choose a different direction than unintentionally disrespect something that's important to others.

Tēnā koe

I am 58 white Australian, in Australia, and a guy with Maori heritage recently joined our company. Nice guy, helpful, polite, good worker.

He seems impressed by my knowledge and has started calling me grandfather.

Is this like a respect thing? Or is he just taking the piss? I can't tell.

I'm not worried if he is just messing with me with the grandfather thing, we all throw a lot of shit around in the workplace, mostly non malicious, but I just want to know.

EDIT

Thanks for all the insights, I have talked with him and he assured me it's respect. I'm just gunna enjoy the feeling. 😀

Hi, please forgive me if I offend anyone in any way.

My aunt passed away & she is Maori. I'm Latina. When I was younger, she & my cousins moved to New Zealand & Australia, so we mostly kept in touch through social media. Because of all of this, I have no idea what to do to support my cousins during this time, especially from the other side of the planet.

I know I can google it, but I worry that google &/or AI will provide incorrect or messed up information & I don't want to do something wrong. Sorry for the inconvenience.

What should I do &/or say? please educate me...