Challenging the status quo and being the representation you want to see can be a lonely uphill battle. Shilo is an author and journalist who is of Ngāpuhi and Tainui iwi and she on that path to breaking down existing narratives and heavily entrenched racism against Māori in New Zealand through her storytelling.
In this first part of the interview, we talk about our early days as graduate journalists at The Manukau Courier, Shilo's time in Hong Kong as a missionary and battling racism while working in Tauranga.
Make sure to tune in to next week's episode to hear the rest of her interview, where we delve more into how she embarked on the journey she's on now to reclaiming her own identity, language and culture in the context of working in the media.
Language notes:1. "iwi" means "people" or "tribe".
2. "Aotearoa" is the Māori name for New Zealand.
3. "Pākehā" means a non-Māori New Zealander, generally of European descent
4. A marae is a meeting ground and focal point of Māori communities, incorporating a carved meeting house, Te Wharenui. It's where the community gathers for celebrations, funerals, and other important events.
You can support and follow Shilo's work through her
Instagram account and
Twitter, as well as her column at
Newsroom. She is documenting her Te Reo Māori journey through her own podcast,
Back to Kura.
If you liked this episode, please make sure to share, subscribe and leave a rating. I would appreciate all your help in getting these stories out to more people so that we too can challenge the narrative and be the representation we want to see.
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