12 Questions: Mary Ama

Mary Ama teaches inmates about their culture during prison weaving classes. Photo / Dean Purcell

Mary Ama and the Pacifica Mamas share their culture in weaving workshops for everyone from school children to prison inmates. The Mamas are among groups showcasing Maori and Pacific art and culture in this month’s Urbanesia Festival

1. Do the male inmates at Spring Hill Corrections Facility like weaving?

Well, it's so funny. Some of them ask me, "Mama, why are we weaving? This is a women's thing." I say, "Who has been telling lies to you?" It's men who do the most beautiful weaving. Women weave the basic, practical baskets for fishing and collecting food. I developed this programme Vaka Fa'aola which means Canoe for Hope for our Pacific prisoners. The idea is to teach these boys about their culture so they can feel proud of who they are. While we're weaving I take them back into how people survive back home in the islands.

2. So it's not just about weaving?

We sing, we dance and we talk while we make things and because they're enjoying themselves they open up and talk about things. It's really therapy. We also learn how to communicate without being aggressive. These boys have ended up inside for a crime they have done but we all make mistakes. I call prison "time out". It's somewhere you can sit and think and learn. I try to change negative thinking into positive. I say, "It's up to you dear. All those wrong things you've been doing in your past? Maybe put them on hold. You've got to find that deep in your heart that you want to do things a bit better."

3. Does it make any difference?

It does. I see it in their interest and the changes in their behaviour. I've been with the Corrections Department for 7 years and we've come a long way. Although I did see a couple of the boys from our Vaka on the TV because they cut their ankle bracelets off. Sometimes the environments they've gone back to are difficult. They are still very raw when they come out and they need a group of people that will help them. One of our Pacifica Mamas is a Winz manager so they utilise her a lot for advice on benefits and things. 4.What else are the Mamas working on at the moment? We've been commissioned to make a massive, 16m quilt for the new Manukau Institute of Technology building. It's a handmade Cook Islands tivaevae with Maori design elements. It will take three of us over a month to make it. We try to have a balance between making money and being as generous as possible. We hold workshops with school children, sell our baskets on the internet and do huge floral arrangements for functions like the 50th Anniversary celebrations in the Cook Islands.

5. Why do you weave out of plastic?

We use recycled plastic. Children love giving new life to things that were rubbish. I collect sack loads of plastic strapping from the factories which we weave into bags and baskets. These giant lei are made from supermarket plastic bags cut up and twisted and sewn on to a hula hoop. We try to have a story behind everything we do. That's what it's all about.

6. What is your ancestry?

I was born in the Cook Islands, of Cook Island Maori, Samoan and English descent, and came to New Zealand for my education. I was fortunate to be raised by my grandparents. My mother died when I was very young and my father, who was a police officer, remarried. My great-grandfather, George Robson Crummer, was a photographer who came from England and married the daughter of a high chief of Takitimu. Te Papa is making a documentary on him. He introduced the first automobile to the Cook Islands and that's something I've inherited because I love nice cars. That's my Porsche parked out there.

7. Are you religious?

I grew up in a Christian family, Presbyterian, but not so much to practise the religion. We'd go to church to have a little snooze.

8. Are you married?

No. I don't think a man could have enough patience with a woman being too busy and hardly around the house. I wanted to become a lawyer but didn't finish because I had my daughters and I chose my girls at that time. I raised them all by myself but it wasn't that difficult because I got jobs I could work on while I was at home. I worked for the government in departments like Housing, Justice and Winz and for the council advising on Pacific arts. I'm very proud of my daughters. I provided for them the best that I could and I didn't fail them.

9. Have you seen Henderson change much in your time here?

Oh yes. Some changes were quite sad. We lost a lot of the beautiful little shops on the main road but we've gained a wonderful new rail corridor and the new motorway's happening now. There has been a huge increase of migrants. We need to make sure there is a balance of cultures. That is not easy probably but I think it's important for all of us.

10. What are your hopes for our super diverse future?

In years to come there will be a huge Pacific population here and I hope they'll still remember where they're from. We need more of our Pacific people to get into the right positions so we have influence on decision-making. When they get into Parliament it doesn't matter if they're National or Labour, they should work together.

11. Should there be a Pacific Party?

We do need a body to represent the voice of the Pacific otherwise we'll keep saying, "You're nice Mr Politician, will you remember us?". They'd need the right people to drive it. We could have a leaders' forum, one level down from the Prime Minister, of community leaders who actually do the work and understand what we're talking about.

12. What are the Pacifica Mamas doing for this year's Urbanesia festival?

We're creating a garden of woven flowers here at the Pacifica Arts Centre in Henderson. Anyone can drop in to our flower weaving workshops from Thursday, November 26 to Saturday, November 28 between 10.30am and 2.30pm.