E-Tangata
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An online magazine committed to independent Māori and Pacific journalism that challenges and cultivates understanding. Subscribe and donate here: https://e-tangata.co.nz/?utm_source=bluesky&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=subscribe
“Every ancestor that has ever lived is still a part of your family. Their physical absence doesn’t alter their ongoing impact on your life. One of the beauties of living a brown life is to know you’re never alone.” — Tainui Stephens.
Brown and sorted | E-Tangata
“Every ancestor that has ever lived is still a part of your family. Their physical absence doesn't alter their ongoing impact on your life. One of the beauties of living a brown life is to know you're...
e-tangata.co.nz
December 6, 2025 at 8:49 PM
“Every ancestor that has ever lived is still a part of your family. Their physical absence doesn’t alter their ongoing impact on your life. One of the beauties of living a brown life is to know you’re never alone.” — Tainui Stephens.
“They were unwitting participants in the violence of colonisation, imperialism and capitalism, just as we, their descendants, continue to be today.” — Catherine Knight on her settler ancestors.
Making an uncommon land | E-Tangata
“They were unwitting participants in the violence of colonisation, imperialism and capitalism, just as we, their descendants, continue to be today.” — Catherine Knight on her settler ancestors.
e-tangata.co.nz
December 6, 2025 at 8:48 PM
“They were unwitting participants in the violence of colonisation, imperialism and capitalism, just as we, their descendants, continue to be today.” — Catherine Knight on her settler ancestors.
“She began life as Narua, and she was Narua when she passed. In between, a wrong was corrected. The mana of her name was restored.” — Maureen Sinton.
Restoring Aunty's real name | E-Tangata
“She began life as Narua, and she was Narua when she passed. In between, a wrong was corrected. The mana of her name was restored.” — Maureen Sinton.
e-tangata.co.nz
December 6, 2025 at 8:47 PM
“She began life as Narua, and she was Narua when she passed. In between, a wrong was corrected. The mana of her name was restored.” — Maureen Sinton.
Alongside the many critiques of government policies that we published in 2025, we also ran many pieces about fortitude, accomplishment, and optimism. These are the stories that we’d like to leave you with over the summer. Stories of restoration, resistance, and hope.
Summer reading: A year of resistance and hope | E-Tangata
Alongside the many critiques of government policies that we published in 2025, we also ran many pieces about fortitude, accomplishment, and optimism. These are the stories that we’d like to leave you ...
e-tangata.co.nz
December 6, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Alongside the many critiques of government policies that we published in 2025, we also ran many pieces about fortitude, accomplishment, and optimism. These are the stories that we’d like to leave you with over the summer. Stories of restoration, resistance, and hope.
“The arguments to exercise caution with DNA are valid, if a bit doom-laden. But there is another perspective that we need to consider, and that’s the power of DNA to reconnect those Māori who don’t know their whakapapa.” — Atakohu Middleton, who found her sister through DNA testing.
Tōku tuakana hou: My new sister | E-Tangata
“The arguments to exercise caution with DNA are valid, if a bit doom-laden. But there is another perspective that we need to consider, and that’s the power of DNA to reconnect those Māori who don’t kn...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 22, 2025 at 6:54 PM
“The arguments to exercise caution with DNA are valid, if a bit doom-laden. But there is another perspective that we need to consider, and that’s the power of DNA to reconnect those Māori who don’t know their whakapapa.” — Atakohu Middleton, who found her sister through DNA testing.
The Jevon McSkimming affair “is yet another distraction, a smokescreen, from some truly worrying developments at the other end of the criminal justice sector”. — Denis O’Reilly on the soaring prison muster (and its soaring costs), and the meth crisis.
The meth crisis keeps me up at night | E-Tangata
The Jevon McSkimming affair “is yet another distraction, a smokescreen, from some truly worrying developments at the other end of the criminal justice sector”. — Denis O’Reilly on the soaring prison m...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 22, 2025 at 6:53 PM
The Jevon McSkimming affair “is yet another distraction, a smokescreen, from some truly worrying developments at the other end of the criminal justice sector”. — Denis O’Reilly on the soaring prison muster (and its soaring costs), and the meth crisis.
“The relationships that schools and kura have with Māori endures despite directives from the right-wing.” — Awanui Te Huia.
Schools commit to Te Tiriti anyway | E-Tangata
“The relationships that schools and kura have with Māori endures despite directives from the right-wing.” — Awanui Te Huia.
e-tangata.co.nz
November 22, 2025 at 6:52 PM
“The relationships that schools and kura have with Māori endures despite directives from the right-wing.” — Awanui Te Huia.
“The treaties of the 1840s shared a common foundation. They were instruments of imperial domination, signed under pressure. The Treaty of Waitangi belongs in that company — yet where others withered, it lived on.” — Shane Te Pou.
The other treaties of 1840 | E-Tangata
“The treaties of the 1840s shared a common foundation. They were instruments of imperial domination, signed under pressure. The Treaty of Waitangi belongs in that company — yet where others withered, ...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 15, 2025 at 9:07 PM
“The treaties of the 1840s shared a common foundation. They were instruments of imperial domination, signed under pressure. The Treaty of Waitangi belongs in that company — yet where others withered, it lived on.” — Shane Te Pou.
“Māori institutions can’t rely on formal mandates alone. If we want legitimacy that endures, we need to design institutions that reflect our own power dynamics.” — Sacha McMeeking.
Which mandate matters most? | E-Tangata
“Māori institutions can’t rely on formal mandates alone. If we want legitimacy that endures, we need to design institutions that reflect our own power dynamics.” — Sacha McMeeking.
e-tangata.co.nz
November 15, 2025 at 9:06 PM
“Māori institutions can’t rely on formal mandates alone. If we want legitimacy that endures, we need to design institutions that reflect our own power dynamics.” — Sacha McMeeking.
“We have a government willing to reshape constitutional understandings without genuine consultation, careful process, or respect for long-standing norms.” — Mark Feary.
The slow demolition of our democracy | E-Tangata
“We have a government willing to reshape constitutional understandings without genuine consultation, careful process, or respect for long-standing norms.” — Mark Feary.
e-tangata.co.nz
November 15, 2025 at 9:06 PM
“We have a government willing to reshape constitutional understandings without genuine consultation, careful process, or respect for long-standing norms.” — Mark Feary.
“You can’t separate the conditions in which people live from their health. They’re completely interwoven, and I absolutely feel a deep sense of responsibility and commitment to addressing those wider determinants.” — Dr Corina Grey, Director of Public Health.
Corina Grey: Health inequalities aren't inevitable | E-Tangata
“You can't separate the conditions in which people live from their health. They're completely interwoven, and I absolutely feel a deep sense of responsibility and commitment to addressing those wider ...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 15, 2025 at 9:05 PM
“You can’t separate the conditions in which people live from their health. They’re completely interwoven, and I absolutely feel a deep sense of responsibility and commitment to addressing those wider determinants.” — Dr Corina Grey, Director of Public Health.
“I had naïvely assumed that as we marched towards social freedom and equity for all, the benefits of these social changes would be self-explanatory, and conservative resistance would dissipate and eventually disappear, like a kind of natural evolutionary extinction.” — Anton Blank.
From the periphery into the centre | E-Tangata
“I had naïvely assumed that as we marched towards social freedom and equity for all, the benefits of these social changes would be self-explanatory, and conservative resistance would dissipate and eve...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 8, 2025 at 8:41 PM
“I had naïvely assumed that as we marched towards social freedom and equity for all, the benefits of these social changes would be self-explanatory, and conservative resistance would dissipate and eventually disappear, like a kind of natural evolutionary extinction.” — Anton Blank.
“As November 5, the anniversary of the invasion of Parihaka, reminds us, non-violent peaceful protest is rooted deep within this nation’s whakapapa.” — Alistair Reese.
Our legacy of peace | E-Tangata
“As November 5, the anniversary of the invasion of Parihaka, reminds us, non-violent peaceful protest is rooted deep within this nation’s whakapapa.” — Alistair Reese.
e-tangata.co.nz
November 8, 2025 at 8:41 PM
“As November 5, the anniversary of the invasion of Parihaka, reminds us, non-violent peaceful protest is rooted deep within this nation’s whakapapa.” — Alistair Reese.
“What is clear from He Whakaputanga is that there was never a ceding of any kind of sovereignty to Britain. Not then, nor five years later, when Te Tiriti was signed at Waitangi.” — Catherine Delahunty.
Towards He Whakaputanga | E-Tangata
“What is clear from He Whakaputanga is that there was never a ceding of any kind of sovereignty to Britain. Not then, nor five years later, when Te Tiriti was signed at Waitangi.” — Catherine Delahunt...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 8, 2025 at 8:40 PM
“What is clear from He Whakaputanga is that there was never a ceding of any kind of sovereignty to Britain. Not then, nor five years later, when Te Tiriti was signed at Waitangi.” — Catherine Delahunty.
“The proposal effectively deprioritises Te Tiriti so that it sits as a supporting objective. We believe, and have advised, that this will not have the desired effect.” — Rahui Papa.
Rahui Papa: What needs to change in schools isn’t the law | E-Tangata
“The proposal effectively deprioritises Te Tiriti so that it sits as a supporting objective. We believe, and have advised, that this will not have the desired effect.” — Rahui Papa.
e-tangata.co.nz
November 8, 2025 at 8:40 PM
“The proposal effectively deprioritises Te Tiriti so that it sits as a supporting objective. We believe, and have advised, that this will not have the desired effect.” — Rahui Papa.
“Not caring anymore doesn’t mean the problem is no longer there. Especially in the Pacific, where climate change isn’t a distant threat but a present-day catastrophe already uprooting communities, unravelling the fine tapestry of culture, and upending entire ways of life.” — Jamie Tahana.
Giving up isn't an option for the Pacific | E-Tangata
“Not caring anymore doesn’t mean the problem is no longer there. Especially in the Pacific, where climate change isn’t a distant threat but a present-day catastrophe already uprooting communities, unr...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 8, 2025 at 8:39 PM
“Not caring anymore doesn’t mean the problem is no longer there. Especially in the Pacific, where climate change isn’t a distant threat but a present-day catastrophe already uprooting communities, unravelling the fine tapestry of culture, and upending entire ways of life.” — Jamie Tahana.
“As Māori cultural practices continue to thrive here in Australia, it’s important to know that even here, dress codes regulating tattoos should yield to the right of Māori to wear moko kanohi and other tā moko.” — Brisbane-based lawyer Bridget Burton.
On the face of it, discriminating against tā moko is illegal | E-Tangata
“As Māori cultural practices continue to thrive here in Australia, it’s important to know that even here, dress codes regulating tattoos should yield to the right of Māori to wear moko kanohi and othe...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 1, 2025 at 10:32 PM
“As Māori cultural practices continue to thrive here in Australia, it’s important to know that even here, dress codes regulating tattoos should yield to the right of Māori to wear moko kanohi and other tā moko.” — Brisbane-based lawyer Bridget Burton.
“Like many of us, I learned to numb my sensitivity through alcohol and distraction. For years, I spoke about mauri as a concept, yet I had never truly felt its flow within me.” — Kingi Snelgar on healing.
My season of renewal | E-Tangata
“Like many of us, I learned to numb my sensitivity through alcohol and distraction. For years, I spoke about mauri as a concept, yet I had never truly felt its flow within me.” — Kingi Snelgar on heal...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 1, 2025 at 10:31 PM
“Like many of us, I learned to numb my sensitivity through alcohol and distraction. For years, I spoke about mauri as a concept, yet I had never truly felt its flow within me.” — Kingi Snelgar on healing.
“The system was designed by individuals who believed in a specific version of New Zealand — where everyone was theoretically equal, yet the structures of equality were calibrated for only one culture.” — Mark Feary.
Why the system will never truly serve us | E-Tangata
“The system was designed by individuals who believed in a specific version of New Zealand — where everyone was theoretically equal, yet the structures of equality were calibrated for only one culture....
e-tangata.co.nz
November 1, 2025 at 10:31 PM
“The system was designed by individuals who believed in a specific version of New Zealand — where everyone was theoretically equal, yet the structures of equality were calibrated for only one culture.” — Mark Feary.
“In Sāmoa, our people are the doctors, the lawyers, the prime ministers. I’ve grown up always surrounded by our people being educated, being in leadership.” — Dr Emma Dunlop-Bennett, assistant vice-chancellor (Pasifika), Te Herenga Waka–Victoria University of Wellington.
Emma Dunlop-Bennett: Investing in others | E-Tangata
“In Sāmoa, our people are the doctors, the lawyers, the prime ministers. I've grown up always surrounded by our people being educated, being in leadership.” — Dr Emma Dunlop-Bennett, assistant vice-ch...
e-tangata.co.nz
November 1, 2025 at 10:30 PM
“In Sāmoa, our people are the doctors, the lawyers, the prime ministers. I’ve grown up always surrounded by our people being educated, being in leadership.” — Dr Emma Dunlop-Bennett, assistant vice-chancellor (Pasifika), Te Herenga Waka–Victoria University of Wellington.
“Rather than stripping each other down, perhaps this is the moment to hold compassion for those we have chosen to lead us, even when we disagree, even when they fall short.” — Shonelle Wana.
Our leaders are human too | E-Tangata
e-tangata.co.nz
October 25, 2025 at 7:11 PM
“Rather than stripping each other down, perhaps this is the moment to hold compassion for those we have chosen to lead us, even when we disagree, even when they fall short.” — Shonelle Wana.
“It’s spiritually powerful music, and that’s why I gravitate to it. We hear the music, and we feel it. And then we hear the social commentary, and it just tops it off and validates our feelings.” — Katchafire’s Logan Bell on reggae’s appeal.
Logan Bell: When music took over | E-Tangata
e-tangata.co.nz
October 25, 2025 at 7:10 PM
“It’s spiritually powerful music, and that’s why I gravitate to it. We hear the music, and we feel it. And then we hear the social commentary, and it just tops it off and validates our feelings.” — Katchafire’s Logan Bell on reggae’s appeal.
“Every movement that changes the world depends on two kinds of energy. One pushes from the outside, demanding transformation. The other works from the inside, turning vision into practical steps.” — Sacha McMeeking.
Sacha McMeeking: Between cohesion and collapse | E-Tangata
e-tangata.co.nz
October 25, 2025 at 7:10 PM
“Every movement that changes the world depends on two kinds of energy. One pushes from the outside, demanding transformation. The other works from the inside, turning vision into practical steps.” — Sacha McMeeking.
“If a ‘knowledge-rich’ curriculum isn’t grounded in te ao Māori and the very people and things that make Aotearoa unique, who is determining the knowledge and where does it come from?” — Jessie Moss on the ideology behind education reform.
The imported ideology behind education reform | E-Tangata
e-tangata.co.nz
October 25, 2025 at 7:09 PM
“If a ‘knowledge-rich’ curriculum isn’t grounded in te ao Māori and the very people and things that make Aotearoa unique, who is determining the knowledge and where does it come from?” — Jessie Moss on the ideology behind education reform.
“The idea that people educated in this country should devote a small fraction of their undergraduate study to understanding our history and its relevance to all citizens today ought to be unremarkable.” — Emeritus Professor Alison Jones on Auckland Uni's decision to drop proposed compulsory courses.
A betrayal of academic freedom | E-Tangata
e-tangata.co.nz
October 18, 2025 at 7:55 PM
“The idea that people educated in this country should devote a small fraction of their undergraduate study to understanding our history and its relevance to all citizens today ought to be unremarkable.” — Emeritus Professor Alison Jones on Auckland Uni's decision to drop proposed compulsory courses.