February 14, 2018
Treaty petition challenges racial hierarchy
A petition has been launched to include acknowledgement of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in the oath given to new citizens.
The Action Station petition has been organised by University of Waikato research officer Arama Rata.
She says the current oath only acknowledges one treaty partner – the crown.
The petition has the backing of a number of individuals and groups who feel it’s time to challenge some of the unspoken assumptions around citizenship, such as that Pakeha at the top.
"And so part of it is about addressing the racism that exists in our own communities so although we may be people of colour, sometimes it is easy to adopt the racial hierarchies we see in society so we are all about challenginh that, working together in solidarity to make New Zealand a more equitable place," Dr Rata says.
The petition is at https://our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/honour-te-tiriti-changetheoath.
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