Abstract:
The Māori activist movement and the anti-racism protests in the 1970s and 1980s challenged the long-held belief that New Zealand had the best race relations in the world. New Zealand has a long and complex history of racism and race relations. Colonisation, amalgamation and integration were racial policies that oppressed Māori and created inequalities between Māori and Pākehā. However, the challenges caused by the Māori activists and the anti-racist movement encouraged the government and other institutions, such as the Anglican Church, to research new ways of dealing with race relations in New Zealand. The Anglican Church researched and implemented biculturalism and partnership into their institution, resulting in a complete transformation of the Anglican Church. A major component of examining biculturalism and partnership was submissions provided by New Zealanders. These submissions offered insight on a variety of topics of the period, including racism, Māori activist movement and biculturalism. The concepts of biculturalism and partnership were considered the best way forward for the future of New Zealand race relations and to promote equality between Māori and Pākehā. Māori activism, the anti-racism movement and research into biculturalism and partnership forced Pākehā to question their identity as a nation and as a people. Historians such as Michael King and Donna Awatere both challenged and encouraged Pākehā New Zealanders' quest for identity.
