A tie and Te Ao Ma¯ori inspires award entrant
It is an understanding of Te Ao Ma¯ori and MP Rawiri Waititi’s tie that has taken one Tawa College student to the national semifinals of the Race Unity Speech Awards.
Lucia Bernards, 16, (Te Aitanga a¯ Hauiti ki U¯ awa) is one of two lower
North Island students who will represent the region at the semifinals today.
Lucia, who also attended the national awards last year, and won the Tohu Aumangea-Hedi
Moani Memorial Award for Advocacy, said she has looked at this year’s theme, Kia Kotahi te Hoe – Paddle as One, using te ata, the stages of dawn. ‘‘I decided to add a little bit of a twist to it, and decided to make it about Te Ao Ma¯ori and how we can use what they learnt way back today, to truly paddle as one towards race unity.’’
She uses the first stage, te ata po¯ (before dawn) to represent the current state of race relations in Aotearoa.
‘‘The main example I used with that was the issue of the tie and Rawiri Waititi in Parliament.
‘‘We saw an ancient rule of Parliament, which was heavily enforced in Parliament today. But a man fought for what he thought was right . . . and was successful in getting that rule change. It gave me an idea that if he can do it, anyone in New Zealand can do it.’’
In February, Ma¯ori Party co-leader Waititi was expelled for wearing a hei tiki, rather than a tie, with his refusal to do so leading to a change in Parliament’s rules dictating male MPs wear ties. At the time, Waititi described Parliament’s concession as a victory for Ma¯ori and indigenous people.
Last year, Covid-19 forced the nationals online. ‘‘Last year was the first time I ever did a speech, so being online was a bit easier for me to confidently present my speech,’’ Lucia said. ‘‘This year was really different. It was a really good experience though it took me out of my comfort zone.’’
Tawa College has become a powerhouse when it comes to the awards. As well as Lucia winning the advocacy award last year, the overall winner was then year 13 Tawa College student Jess Jenkins, an accolade that helped her be admitted to Harvard University.
‘‘I think last year with Jess winning, and me also being in the national finals, it opened the eyes of the kids in the school, and it gave them confidence to try and do something like that themselves, which is why I think we had so many people wanting to do it this year.’’
Teacher Belinda Sheridan said she was hugely proud of Lucia, saying her only involvement with her prep work had been as a vocal cheerleader. Lucia’s speech was ‘‘heartfelt and compelling’’ and she was building on the success she had achieved last year.
The semifinals in Auckland include 21 students, six of whom will proceed to the finals on Sunday. Masterton’s Solway College student Sheryl Chand is the other student representing the lower North Island.
‘‘I decided to add a little bit of a twist to it.’’ Lucia Bernards on her speech