Willie Jackson: The fight for the Māori language was a barrier broken by our reo warriors

Maori Development Minister Willie Jackson. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Opinion

I had this stroppy aunty - but she was no ordinary aunty.

She used to upset a lot of Pakeha. But if I was being totally honest, the reality was that she upset a lot of Māori too.

Her name was Hana Jackson. She was married to my uncle Sid, who was my dad's brother, and when they later divorced, she took her maiden name Te Hemara back.

Her and my uncle Sid were the most high profile Māori couple in the country and were the leaders of the Nga Tamatoa protest movement.

She is being honoured in the week we celebrate the Māori Language, Te Wiki o te Reo Maori.

'I am Hana' is the theme and there are exhibitions, murals and a big dinner evening happening in her home of Taranaki.

I am so pleased this aunty is being honoured because in some respects so many of our women have not received the kudos they deserve for their fight for our language.

And believe you me it was a fight.

Hana was chosen to present the Māori language petition on behalf of Nga Tamatoa and the Te Reo Maori Society and other Māori groups on the steps of Parliament on September 14, 1972.

Over 33,000 signatories signed the petition, which was huge in those days and still significant today.

It is appropriate to remember or recall what the petitioners had to go through to get where they were.

New Zealand in 1972 wasn't particularly sensitive to Māori language or aspirations.

The everyday view was that learning Maori was a waste of time and you could only get anywhere by fully embracing European culture.

Sadly many of our people adopted this view also and anyone who had a contrary view was viewed as a troublemaker or Māori activist.

That was Hana and Nga Tamatoa, but they were absolutely imperative for the Māori struggle at the time.

Hana, alongside Māori Sovereignty Queen Donna Awatere and top academic Linda Smith, called out Pakeha society for its racist actions against Māori.

Hana Heta Te Hemara. Photo/ Twitter

They challenged Pakeha academics and an education system that had made Te Reo Māori virtually invisible.

They were joined in the fight by their, at times, militant sisters and brothers in Tamatoa who, not only debated with authorities but on the odd occasion used force when they felt it was appropriate.

These actions horrified Pakeha.

After all, the 'we are all one people' mantra was the society that kiwis had become accustomed to, and as they would constantly point out, even our great leaders like Apirana Ngata believed this when he said Māori had to prove themselves as New Zealand citizens.

However, Hana and Tamatoa refused to accept that.

They loved Ngata and knew he was a product of his generation, so they weren't buying that explanation and instead responded with the view 'that only Pakeha were racist', and Māori could not be racist.

That view was based on the premise of power and if you didn't have the power how could you be racist.?

Whether you agree with that or not, it certainly got Hana and Tamatoa in the news, which was necessary if they were going to be heard or seen or have any influence.

Sometimes controversial statements had to be made or no one would listen which might have explained why Hana came out with the infamous 'kill a white and become a hero' comment in the late 80s.

I actually couldn't believe she said that at the time.

She told me she was taken out of context, and was referring to the appalling state of racism in the NZ justice system.

She was not a violent woman but a strong passionate and vibrant one, and believe it or not a person who had many Pakeha friends and admirers.

Her challenges came at a cost though. She and Tamatoa were turned away from marae from iwi around the country and she told me members of her own tribe had rejected her.

She was even assaulted, but she kept it quiet because Hana always believed in the kaupapa first.

That's what drove her - kaupapa first and foremost.

She, like so many of the last couple of generations, was denied access to our language.

So she was driven to get our reo back in our schools and education system.

I wanted to honour this aunty because I don't believe enough of the women have been acknowledged from that time for their contribution.

I'm pleased her daughter Ramari and niece Amokura are celebrating her life with the 'I Hana' kaupapa this week.

She and the other stroppy women of Nga Tamatoa deserve so much credit for the fight they put up in making te reo Maori prominent again in Aotearoa.

Willie Jackson is the Minister of Māori Development.