I’m comparing the ugly scenes at the Posie Parker protest over the weekend and the anti-co-governance protest in Orewa the week earlier.
At the Orewa protest, Māori activists peacefully sang and protested and corrected the deeply offensive rhetoric of Julian Batchelor who is touring the country and attempting to sell some conspiracy that Māori are taking over the country.
By peacefully protesting issues as highly controversial as Co-Governance, the protestors managed to win over those who were watching on.
Their protest had mana and it conquered the angry rhetoric.
That isn’t what happened at the Albert Park protest. Whatever one may feel about Posie Parker, she did not deserve to be assaulted, threatened and intimidated.
Most of New Zealand was surprised and taken aback by how violent the protest became and questioned why attacking a woman and chasing her off stage was a win for Democracy.
Posie Parker has said some terrible things about a vulnerable community, but so has Julian Batchelor.
Peaceful protest isn’t about changing the minds of the angry preacher preaching division, peaceful protest is about changing the minds of everyone else who is watching.
We have much to learn from peaceful Māori protest in this country in times as politically polarised and charged as this.
First published on Waatea News.
Martyn – Agreed …Shame the few Maori who were present (except the supporters of Ms Parker, and Destiny Church supporters, who were Maori in many cases) decided to use force against others…upsetting
There always a disparaging remark even when Maori collectively do good and its noticeable that the comment section is always empty from pakeha mostly because IMO these viral trolls have little room to maneuver there hatred towards Maori but a few like Nathan will add in a little snide remark so as to not come across as a racist.
Stephen – I am wrong on my comments? If so, please write it, if not….then what is your point?
Agree , also think the police did a much better job in orewa ,
Sorry Scott, you got that wrong. The police didnt do a much better job in Orewa. They just quite simply did their job which they quite clearly didnt in Albert Park.
Can one really blame the police for not taking on that mob.
Yet, free speech is suppressed by woke councils?
Let’s debate these issues and stop the name calling.
Peaceful protest by Labour and Greens is too big an ask,they know only violence.
The angry trans rights extremists broke through the barriers around the women’s rights march, ganged up on her and then bashed a 70-year-old woman!
The gween party instigated this with all their affiliate and feeder terror groups.
These gutless cowards need a bash themselves or alternatively locking up in a man’s prison for some self-reflection.
Like no trans person has ever been an innocent victim of violence, aggression and oppression.
Supporting and turning out to a contested hate speech event evens the culpability field.
It’s called consequences.
whataboutism is never a convincing argument alien
Neither is othering and deliberate, pointed aggression to a minority under constant attack.
What B/S. You say “By peacefully protesting issues as highly controversial as Co-Governance, the protestors managed to win over those who were watching on.” How do you know that was the effect of the protestors? Its the majority that weren’t watching on that need to be won over.
tell it to the french