27/06/2023
Kai pai ❤️❤️❤️
For the last four years Number 10 have been on a journey- to learn more about Te Ao Māori, and our ethical and moral responsibility as a social service provider in Aotearoa. We have talked with kaumatua and kaimahi here in Murihiku and throughout the motu. We have encouraged our staff in their own journeys to engage with their whakapapa, to learn about their whānau and the stories that brought their ancestors to Aotearoa. We have embraced te reo Māori as the indigenous language of this country and are encouraging each other as staff to become more confident in using kupu as we are able. We have sought out education about Te Tiriti ō Waitangi and have learned about the ongoing effects of colonization on Māori, and our responsibilities in this space, not just as a service but as members of our community. And most importantly, we have listened to young Māori men and women talk about their experiences of marginalization and disconnection, and that having places of belonging and connection where their culture (language, protocols, and values) is valued and celebrated are incredibly important as a resilience factor. We have approached this journey with openness, a willingness to engage and a desire to make our community a safe space for all people.
What we have discovered is that embedding these things into our practice has been better for all the rangatahi we work with, not just rangatahi Māori. It has not diminished our cultures. And it has enriched what we do in so many ways.
We are dismayed by our Mayor’s recent comments around Te Tiriti and te reo and want to make our position very clear. We are driven by a very real and genuine desire to do the best for rangatahi in Murihiku, so we will continue on our journey.
In the words of Maya Angelou, an American civil rights activist “Do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.”
