Photographs from Saturday’s commemoration of Waitangi Day in Emerson in Western Sydney, Darug Land.
The community event pressed for Toitū Te Tiriti - or the honouring of the Waitangi Treaty, the foundational document which has determined relations between Māori and Pākehā (Europeans) since the British colonisation of Aotearoa (New Zealand). The Treaty is currently under threat by the current right-wing New Zealand government which intends to pass The Treaty Principles Bill. Many Māori see this piece of legislation as not only an attempt to undermine long-established Māori rights but as racist. Toitū Te Tiriti has spread as a protest movement across Aotearoa, ‘Australia’ and internationally.
Saturday’s event in Emerton consisted of a smoking by local Darug representatives, Uncle Lex Dadd and Auntie Corina Norman, followed by speeches, a hīkoi (march) through the local neighbourhood, cultural activities and lunch.
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