Never the twain shall meet
Malcolm Evans – never the twain shall meet
New Zealand Politics
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GUEST BLOG: Bryan Bruce – Mucad Ibrahim was just 3 years old when he reportedly died in his father’s arms during last Friday’s massacre.
Mucad’s right to life (and the right to life of all the 49 other innocent victims of Friday’s massacre) vastly supersedes anyone’s “right” to own a semi- automatic weapon.
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How to combat Islamophobia and white supremacy
Whether consciously or not, successive New Zealand governments have helped foster this modern Islamophobia by participating in the American-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and not speaking out against Western military action in places like the Yemen, Libya and Somalia. The Western propaganda around those wars has fostered prejudice towards Muslims living in New Zealand.
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GUEST BLOG: Suzie Dawson – Misguided Spying and the New Zealand Massacre
Now that the bodies of 50 innocent human beings are lying in a Christchurch, New Zealand, morgue — gunned down by a heavily armed terrorist — New Zealand media are asking the obvious questions: why didn’t our intelligence agencies know there were xenophobic, murderous, white supremacists on the loose in Christchurch?
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Dr Liz Gordon: The racist right in Aotearoa
Thousands of young people (and I am thinking mainly of young men here) up to age 24 are ‘NEET’ (not in education, employment or training). Some have nothing to do but surf the internet all day, where they may find themselves excited by the rhetoric of the far right. Here we see a potential breeding ground for disaster.
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GUEST BLOG: Louie Encabo – How UN Global Compact hysteria is driving right-wing range in New Zealand
The entire country, and the rest of the world, is shocked and disgusted by the terrorist attacks that occurred in Christchurch last week that targeted two mosques. A day before that, Greens co-leader James Shaw was assaulted unprovoked by a member of the public.
The two events had a common denominator – both of the perpetrators were riled by the Government’s signing of the United Nations Global Compact on Migration.
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Forcefields of hate
I feel sad about the consequences for New Zealand. An array of see-it-perfectly well social liberals will advocate the restriction of free speech from those they disagree with. Without question, Tarrant`s manifesto should be taken down, it clearly incites and celebrates violence against others. However, less extreme yet noxious ideas should not be automatically banned from the internet or public meetings.
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National Day of “Peace, Love, Solidarity” needed.
We need to do more, much more to challenge all forms of bigotry and hatred. This includes on a personal level calling out anyone and everyone who peddles the lies and hatreds. It means physically protecting where necessary any people that are being targetted for abuse for their race, religion, ethnicity, sex or gender.
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Waatea News: Why I’m taking my daughter out of school today
I’m taking my 9 year old daughter to the climate protest today, which means she’s wagging a day from school.
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What Happened Here?
Part of the answer, the most important part, we have already seen. In the floral tributes outside the nation’s mosques. In the images of the imam and the rabbi embracing each other. In the Pasifika voices raised in a hymn of heart-breaking poignance. In the Maori and Pakeha faces wet with tears, yet set in grim defiance. In the passionate cry of the massacre survivor: “This is not New Zealand!” In the nearly $5 million already raised to support the victims’ families. The answer already given by the people of New Zealand, united in grief, is unequivocal: When confronted with such reckless hate, the only possible answer is aroha – love.
The wrong answer; the answer the terrorist is always hoping the strategic targets of his rage will give; is to meet recklessness with recklessness; hate with hate.