Let’s Talk About Race – Dame Susan Devoy

At the weekend columnist Fran O’Sullivan described my statements on Race Relations Day 2015 as “breathtakingly naïve”. The reality is that my statements were made more than a year ago and were solely about Race Relations Day 2014. Not 2015. However Fran makes some good points and I’m grateful for columnists like her who encourage us all to think about race relations.

Every 21st March, the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination marks the 1960 Sharpeville Massacre when 69 people – including 10 children – were shot to death by their own Police for protesting against racist apartheid laws. Kiwis need to remember that two months after Sharpeville the All Blacks toured South Africa. We sent a team of Pakeha players and kept Maori players home so as not to offend our hosts. Fast forward 21 years and for those of us old enough to remember, 1981 was the closest we’ve ever come to a civil war since the New Zealand land wars. The thing is in New Zealand there used to be a widely held view – and one that a very young, impressionable 17-year-old me thought I also held – that sports had nothing to do with politics. While this position sounds noble, it was not only naïve but also totally wrong. Sport in South Africa under Apartheid, like everything else, had everything to do with the politics of oppression and racism. When he heard that anti-Apartheid protesters thousands of miles away had forced the cancellation of a test, the late Nelson Mandela said it was as if the sun had come out and shone through his prison cell. It was a watershed year for New Zealanders, we grew up a bit in 1981 and we’ve grown up a lot since then. Five years ago our Rugby Union formally apologised to Maori players who were excluded from All Black teams in order to adhere to South Africa’s policy of apartheid. At the same time the South African Rugby Union apologised to players banned because of their race.

So when pessimists say it’s all going to turn to custard here when it comes to race relations I look back at how far we’ve come as a people and think that no. We’re not perfect but New Zealanders are essentially good people who believe in giving others a fair go. But we shouldn’t pat ourselves on the back too much. We’ve still got a lot of work to do. New Zealand has an excellent international human rights record but it is not worth the paper it is written on if Kiwis are put down because of their race or religion. While we may not face the same rate of race hate incidents as other nations: one is one too many. We’re getting better at learning from our past but planning for our future is something we need to get better at. We can’t just say She’ll Be Right and hope for the best. Because as history has shown us if we don’t get it right, She Won’t Be Right.

This year’s Race Relations Day we will launch New Zealand’s first annual summary of race relations as reported in our media. Ethnic, religious and other minorities regularly tell us they are dismayed at how they’re represented in the mainstream media and with their blessing we decided to look into this further. There are other initiatives we will be revealing closer to the 21st of March but none of them are mere slogans.

2015 marks a year of commemorations. The 175th commemoration of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, 70 years since the liberation of Auschwitz and 100 years since World War One. It’s time to reflect on how far we have come and to ask ourselves, where are we heading? We are one of the most diverse countries in the world. Natty slogans or catch phrases won’t reduce the everyday racism many of us face – the reality is that many New Zealanders don’t even realise Race Relations Day exists. It’s worth talking about what kind of country we want to live in and leave for our children and grandchildren.

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