“I was deeply unhappy. I think people looking in from the outside would have thought: ‘Oh, he’s got it together,’ but there was no one coming to put this fire out.” — Former firefighter Jemarl Paerata on transforming his mental health.
Read More
Māori communities must be “central to the kōrero around whether or when we could or should pursue a project like huia de-extinction.” — Terri Te Tau, author of ‘The Valley of Unlikely Acquaintances’.
Read More
“Māori do grieving and supporting whānau and death better than any other culture that I know. But we don’t, as whānau, engage in the planning side of things to make the rest of it easier.” — Julie Herewini, author of ‘He Aroha Te Aroha’.
Read More
Director Nī Dekkers-Reihana, 33, has reimagined the celebrated British play ‘Constellations’ for Aotearoa, setting it among the stars of Matariki.
Read More
“Over the years, the questions have ranged from ‘Why do we need a Māori cultural liaison person at our workplace?’ to ‘How do we have hard conversations with colleagues to do better?’” — Atakohu Middleton on the questions people put in the Too-Hard Basket.
Read More
“When the war ended, bombs were dumped or buried, and the troops walked away. For more than 80 years, Solomon Islanders have lived in fear that the ground might explode beneath them.” — Atakohu Middleton on a new documentary ‘The War Below’ that looks at how the Second World War is still destroying lives in the Solomons.
Read More
’Waenga’ is very much a family affair. It was written by Hariata Moriarty, 25, and her brother Tamati, 23, who also star in the play. Dad, Jim Moriarty, is directing the play, and mum, Helen Pearse-Otene, is the dramaturge, providing guidance on the story. — Atakohu Middleton.
Read More
“There are assumptions to challenge, expectations to discard, insights to glean, blunders to commit, offences to give and grace to receive. All of this is part of the business of being a halfway good doctor in a largely Māori community.” — Dr Clare Ward.
Read More
“With time, Vela has gained perspective and written his way to peace. And while he’ll never know what drove his father’s violence, he has found compassion for him.” — Atakohu Middleton on Vela Manusaute, writer and co-director of ‘Sons of Vao’.
Read More
“There were moments of complete exhaustion and self-doubt, and many lessons in balancing her dream with responsibility.” — Atakohu Middleton on aspiring young filmmaker Veisinia Moalapau‘u.
Read More
“He is a legend. He will always remain in our hearts and in my family’s memory.” — Nizar Chhoubi, on the man who saved his grandfather and family 83 years ago, Lance Sergeant Haane Manahi.
Read More
“Music has a unique and positive effect on our brains and bodies: it releases the bonding hormone oxytocin and feel-good endorphins. Music also increases neuroplasticity, the brain’s capacity to learn throughout life.” — Atakohu Middleton.
Read More
“I notice it as they come through to the university. They’re a different breed. They are very confident in who they are and where they’re from, and they live comfortably in their own skin.” — Professor Margaret Mutu on one obvious sign of Māori progress over the last 30 years.
Read More
“Tīpene has such a rich history and legacy, and many of the old boys were upset when it closed in 2000. Its closure had left an unfinished chapter in the school’s story.” — Kimiora Kaire-Melbourne, director of the documentary ‘Tīpene – A Legacy Reborn’.
Read More
“When we’re feeling vulnerable, with negative self-chatter going round and round in our heads, the fear of making a mistake stills our tongues.” — Atakohu Middleton talks to Awanui Te Huia about how negative self-talk can undermine efforts to learn te reo.
Read More
“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.
Read More
“In a tribal society with an age-related hierarchy, reporters who push for answers or display scepticism at what they are told can be accused of a lack of manaakitanga.” — Atakohu Middleton.
Read More
“There is a common factor that I see about those who are very quick adult learners. They quickly see that there is no point trying to maintain their ego . . . they are able to laugh at themselves, even if they make lots of mistakes.” — Matiu Ratima.
Read More
“I carry my name with pride. It’s a very public signifier of the reclamation of my whakapapa, and mine is the first Māori name in our direct line in 186 years.” — Atakohu Middleton.
Read More
“Māori journalists see themselves as Māori first and journalists second.” — Atakohu Middleton on her PhD research into the influence of tikanga on reo-Māori journalism.
Read More
Being a good reo speaker doesn’t necessarily qualify you as a good reporter.
Read MoreE-Tangata is an online Sunday magazine specialising in stories that reflect the experiences of Māori and Pasifika in Aotearoa.
We welcome submissions or inquiries to:
editor@e-tangata.co.nz
Sign up for our email newsletter and get the latest E-Tangata stories sent straight to your inbox.
SubscribeYou can support E-Tangata’s kaupapa by contributing through PressPatron. With your help, we can tell more Māori and Pacific stories.
