Over at Mars 2 Earth, Marty had a great post about Maori voices in the blogosphere which drew the comment “How many of you actually speak Maori?”. And this begs the question, does one need to be fluent in Te Reo to comment on Maori issues?
I cannot speak Te Reo fluently. That is not to say that I have no understanding of the language completely. I have over the years many several attempts to learn Te Reo and I can follow basic conversations. Honestly, the inability to speak Te Reo fluently causes me great shame and I am currently taking active steps to learn. I grew up in a distinctly Pakeha household and it was not until I reached the end of my high school years that I became fully attuned to my identity as Maori. Our whanau literally had Te Reo beaten out of us and it has taken a concerted effort by several of my Aunty’s to reintroduce Te Reo into our lives.
However, my inability to speak Te Reo fluently does not disqualify me from commenting on issues of Maori law and politics. I have spent the past five years working and studying in this field and I understand the issues involved. Yet, I know I will be a better Maori lawyer, political analyst, and writer when I can speak Te Reo. Some Maori concepts can only be properly communicated in Te Reo. That is why I am advancing my efforts to speak Te Reo.
Te Reo is a vital part of who we are as Maori. But I do not believe that it is the be-all-and-end-all. What is more important is a commitment to the advancement of Maori tino rangatiratanga.
What do you think?
Tō Tātou Tōnuitanga 
Ka pai Josh – well said. “Yet, I know I will be a better Maori lawyer, political analyst, and writer when I can speak Te Reo.” Even now I really enjoy reading your articles so I can only imgine how much more striking your pieces will be once you’ve accomplished your goal. BTW, Marty puts you amongst some real ignorant bloggers and you come across as being the most worldly, objective, and most open-minded.
Kia ora tēnā e hoa!
Kia ora Joshua,
I’m like you in that I feel shame in not being able to speak fluently and am also taking active steps to learn – with an exam in a couple of weeks! Every little bit helps and we will get there.
Kia ora anon,
Yeah I struggled with putting some on but decided that if they were Māori, that was good enough even if I really didn’t like what they said. I agree that this blog is high quality and vital to the debates.
Thanks Joshua kia kaha e hoa.