"The complicity of Crown Law in the oppression of Māori is undeniable. It is profoundly illogical, therefore, for us to look to that same law for answers to any of the contemporary ills that plague us", so says Ani Mikaere in her book Colonising Myths – Māori Realities: He Rukuruku Whakaaro.
This book brings together, in a series of papers, Ani Mikaere’s reflections on and learnings about the effect of Pākehā law and values on Māori legal thought and practice.
Ani Mikaere (Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Porou) is currently kaihautū of Te Whare Whakatupu Mātauranga at Te Wānanga o Raukawa, where she also tutors in the Ahunga Tikanga (Māori Laws and Philosophy) programme.
In the book, she discusses issues such as the illogicality of seeking justice for Māori within the confines of the coloniser’s law and the importance of reinstating tikanga at the heart of Māori thinking.
She also looks at the myths that have been constructed to obscure the true nature of the Crown–Māori relationship as it was established in 1840 and the insidious effect of Pākehā thought on Māori conceptions of reality, ‘Who, once made aware of the chain about their neck, would not commit themselves to its removal?’ (p. 280).
The book will be available in bookstores in early September and will retail at $45.00..
1 comment:
Just bought a new copy for $71.
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