October 31, 2022
Titewhai Harawira lifetime of wero celebrated
Urban Māori leader John Tamihere says Titewhai Harawira’s 90th birthday celebrations were a chance to acknowledge the contribution of a great woman to the betterment of Māori.
Te Whanau o Waipareira hosted the belated celebration at Trust Bank Stadium in West Auckland on Saturday, which drew about 400 people who have shared her battles over the years.
Mr Tamihere says the Ngapuhi kuia was vilified because she had the audacity to speak her mind about the way Maori had been treated.
“She was set up for failure in a whole bunch of different bodies, from endeavouring to get her own mental health services up and running all the way through. For all that, she relentlessly perservered, and that is in the DNA of her children and her mokopuna,” Mr Tamihere says.
A book on the life of Titewhai Harawira was launched at the event,