Schools commit to Te Tiriti anyway

The government plans to remove the requirement for school boards to give effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Too bad, say hundreds of schools, because they plan to uphold their commitments anyway, as Awanui Te Huia explains.

 

As I write this, 1007 schools across Aotearoa have publicly reaffirmed their commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi.

This shows that the coalition government’s political agenda can’t overwhelm the collective vision that our communities have for an Aotearoa hou, a potential future nation that is led by Te Tiriti.

When individual schools come together and use their collective institutional power, it sends a powerful message. That message is that our commitment to Te Tiriti o Waitangi and the relationships that schools and kura have with Māori endures despite directives from the right-wing.

One thing that stands out for me about this week is the power of positive social pressure. Tania Waikato, a wahine Māori lawyer, has been giving daily updates on a “rārangi rangatira”, an list of schools that have committed to still giving effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi, which you can see her page.

I’ve seen some of the responses to the list from community members, including the signs erected by schools declaring their commitment.

I’m sure the first thing that many people do when they see the list is look to see whether the schools they’re part of have made a public commitment. Others apply social pressure, which includes comments such as: “Still waiting for some other schools I went to.”

The list is being updated daily, and people are paying attention and calling on their schools to make a public declaration.

For many tamariki Māori, schools are the primary place where they connect to their Māoritanga. When school boards can opt out of a commitment to put Te Tiriti into effect, this puts immense pressure on our communities to provide the education that meaningfully includes tamariki Māori. It also neglects the reality that when tamariki Māori see themselves reflected in their education, they thrive along with their whānau and the communities that they belong to.

Another comment sent to Tania Waikato captures some of these challenges:

“I am European & I have for 7 years raised a child whose iwi is Ngāti Kahungunu. She lived in Rotorua & I’m in Nelson. Without the school’s support, I could not have helped her preserve her identity, language, etc . . . Mr Seymour forgets us grandparents in situations like mine . . . If they make this voluntary, then children who are not in bilingual classes like my granddaughter could potentially suffer.”

The silencing of Māori in education affects all of Aotearoa. Yet, despite the coalition government’s attempts to create division across our communities, our Treaty partners have been willing to speak up and make their opposition to these anti-Māori views known.

Positive social pressure has, in some instances, come from parents, alumni and the wider public. While some school boards may have chosen to make such public announcements without internal pressure, we’re seeing an increase in the sense of community agency.

A year ago, on the hīkoi mo Te Tiriti, I joined protesters from all walks of life. The feeling it generated, of the possibility of a brighter future for all of us, was a light shining against the relentless anti-Māori, anti-taiao policies being pushed through by the government.

Although the list of schools signing up to recognise Te Tiriti is not quite at the same scale as the hīkoi, the action generates the same light and hope. It’s a reminder to us as Māori that our Treaty partners can be allies, and can choose to use their power to ensure our tamariki mokopuna are valued as Māori.

When our voices are heard by our local schools and communities, it gives us more confidence in the institutions that are helping to raise future generations.

So, whether you’ve shared a post on your socials, sent an email, or been in touch with your school to demonstrate that you want our future to be accountable to our shared past, your voice counts. You make a difference.

When we push the leadership within our communities and schools to do better, we send a message. When our schools come together as a collective, they send a message to all governments that they’re not going to win votes through divisive anti-Māori tactics.

Let’s remember that when we pull together, our kotahitanga can make a difference. Kia kaha tātou.

Dr Awanui Te Huia (Ngāti Maniapoto) is a senior lecturer at Te Kawa a Māui, Te Herenga Waka – Victoria University of Wellington, where she has taught and researched te reo Māori for over a decade. She also teaches Māori research methods to postgraduate students. Awanui lives in the bilingual town of Ōtaki with her husband Tai and their two children.