racism – 2019 Social work blog 413 /713

Social Work and the Quiet Racism of New Zealand

By Aniram Itufolo

Aotearoa, the land of the long white cloud. A country proud of its multicultural diversity, inclusiveness and its friendly nature. However, the perils and negative effects of the racism that thrives within our country undermine the proud stance we hold in being inclusive.

Being a first generation New Zealand born Samoan in Christchurch forced to assimilate to New Zealand culture, I am well aware of the presence and negative effects of racism as I have experienced this countless times. The way in which racism within New Zealand culture casually presents itself allows it to fester and can manifest into our society unknowingly perpetuating racist ideas. Questions such as “where are you really from?” or statements such as “wow you’re English is really good” have often left me feeling less than and left with an identity crisis.s. A perfect example of this is this YouTube skit in the short film series ‘Misadventures of A Pacific Professional’ written by Tupe Solomon-Tanoai. It depicts the experience of a Samoan woman, Alofa, who holds the position of CFO within her workplace, however her capability is undermined by her colleagues based on her race and her gender. The microaggressions such as the repeated mispronunciation of her Pasifika name, her being asked to make coffees and the looks of disapproval, highlight and perpetuate her colleagues disbelief in her being qualified to do her job, due to her the stereotype that is attached to having brown skin. These types of microaggressions and stereotypes encourage the oppressive structures within New Zealand which limits the ability for those who do not fit as the norm to succeed and reach their full potential.

I know for myself the responsibility I have as a future social work practitioner is to be an agent of change, address racism when it occurs and to be an advocate for equality amongst New Zealand’s diverse population, but what does this mean for Aotearoa social workers as a collective? Do we all have the same understanding and responsibility to speak up? And how does this intersect with the emphasis that is put on practicing in a bicultural way that honours Te Tiriti o Waitangi? Do the radical neoliberal reforms the New Zealand government adopted in the 1980s create a discourse which works to counteract all of the bicultural and inclusive measures that have been implemented so far?

If we look at the history of New Zealand, the failure to uphold and provide Maori with their end of Te Tiriti o Waitangi allowed the opportunity for oppressive structures and systems to form. Harmful stereotypes of Maori were created and are still perpetuated today. The effects of colonisation are still being felt today as is evident with Maori overrepresentation in the negative statistics – stuck within the cycle of remaining in low socioeconomic status which is emphasised here in the health survey . It is a general understanding that many New Zealanders blame this on Maori themselves without acknowledging the oppressive structures that work against their livelihood and wellbeing. These kind of comments are easily located under any Herald article that involves Maori lives. This kind of treatment is not exclusive to Maori and this is evident with the recent terrorist attack in Christchurch. The phrase “They are Us” was circulated frequently in a way to include our Muslim community in Aotearoa, however the use of ‘they’ suggests the are of an ‘other’ category. Leigh-Marama Mclachlan challenges the notion ‘this is not us’ in this article by highlighting the violent racist history of New Zealand that is often dismissed (21 March, 2019).

Policies have been created with the intention to respond to the disparity of inclusivity, such as the Pūao-te-Ata-Tū initiative with child protection in the late 1980s. However I believe the day-to-day work of holding people accountable for racist actions is of most importance. Everybody has biases and different lenses that they view the world through: this is a given. However in order to grow and develop into a better society, it is important to be self-aware, not only of our actions but actions of those around us. This means questioning not only myself on where I could be perpetuating racist ideas but also amongst others. We in New Zealand pride ourselves on our diverse and multicultural population. It’s time to back up our words with our actions.

They come and take our jobs!!… But they are ‘us’

By Moto Moto

Aotearoa New Zealand is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean whose culture has been influenced by the unique milieu and the geographic isolation of the surrounding islands but of these, more so from the indigenous Māori people. However, at its essence it is really western culture and as an effect of the British colonization the country also includes multi-ethnic migration groups. As, a result of this admixture of cultures many New Zealanders have a positive perception on immigration. They feel that it makes the island a more interesting place to live due to the diversity of culture, food, music etc. It is a beneficial for the economy as some immigrants have higher education and qualifications, thus they help fill job shortages in certain industries. However, not everyone believes it is a positive as they hold the notion that immigrants are stealing jobs and making it harder for New Zealanders to be employed.

As a New Zealand immigrant myself, a phrase I am all too familiar with (along with many others) is; ‘all they do is come to our country and take our jobs.’ Before I continue onto my next point, I just want you to think about this; how does someone come and take an opportunity that everyone had access to?

In 2007, there was a shortage of technicians in New Zealand and my father and his colleagues were recruited to come from Zimbabwe as they were qualified technicians. Initially they had to leave behind wives, children, their social life; basically everything they knew in hopes of a stable and improved future.

Upon coming to New Zealand, my father and his colleagues had to go through a challenging process of looking for affordable housing and adjusting to change of culture and environment. I remember him mentioning how he had a frustrating encounter with a European New Zealand male who accused of him “stealing his job” and urged him to “go back where he came from.” I really felt the gravity of this phrase years into my studies and work when I would hear in passing, people complaining about “not having job opportunities because they are all taken by Indians and Chinese.” As an immigrant I would get frustrated because I struggled to understand how something could be taken from ‘them’ since we did not come here by force and insert ourselves in their country but were called here because they were in need. It was not until I familiarized myself with the term privilege . It is defined as “a special right, advantage, or immunity granted or available only to a particular person or group”.

Because many New Zealanders attain privileges as a result of being citizens, they have feelings about immigrants in terms of how these privileges are affected. One might be that they feel these people coming here do ‘not belong’ here, therefore they should not have the same access to opportunities as everyone else. Or two, that they feel as an effect of immigration they have lessened access to these privileges, which is probably the root of the employment issue. But perhaps such belief is rooted in reasoning influenced by racism and xenophobia. These people really believe that in a country like New Zealand in this day and age that immigration is increasing pressure on the country’s resources such as transportation, housing and education. Beliefs that are incomprehensible for someone such as me who has actually seen and experienced (and have many generations of family that have experienced) ‘actual’ lack of resources. In comparison it is a dream living in New Zealand compared to other places, immigrants come here to share in the opportunities not to steal jobs as we know what it like to not have or to struggle to have a little.

To conclude, maybe there is a real issue within the employment sector that needs to be discussed in relation to immigrants, however these toxic beliefs cannot be where we start that conversation. These negative views on immigration cause racial tension and division amongst people when there should be celebration that no matter where they are from, they can come live and work together. I believe there is a need for social workers to be able to navigate such issues through advocacy as it is described heart of social work by (ANZSW) . The question is – do social workers care enough to change the discourse around immigrants?

The Price of Silence

By Jayden

The 15^th of March, 2019. The day Aotearoa New Zealand’s lost its innocence.

A gunman murdered dozens of Muslims in an act of unprecedented terror. A live video stream circulated, documenting the event for all to see. A manifesto from the group publicly declared the attack as an intentional act of race-fuelled hate. ‘One of New Zealand’s darkest days’, our Prime Minister said in response to the events.

The days that followed defined our nation. Thousands of public messages of compassion, solidarity and grief littered local mosques, public centres, the internet. Non-Muslims flocked to stand beside, to walk with, and to cry alongside their Muslim brothers and sisters. Flowers and candles and cards poured out of the hearts of hundreds of New Zealanders, lining the streets in a public demonstration of love rarely seen in the world today. Our nation mourned for the dead, their grieving loved ones, and for our own innocence. We could no longer turn a blind eye to the all too visceral effects of racism under the guise of Islamophobia, and we could no longer naively pretend our own incorruptibility. Racism is alive and well in Aotearoa New Zealand, and now we all get to see it.

Undoubtedly, racism has always been here, muttered under our collective breath as we encounter unfamiliar worldviews. As early as 1861 the New Zealand parliament claimed the moral high ground of ‘promoting Māori moral and social advancement’ while sending military troops to force land sales (Liu & Robinson, 2016, p. 141). In the 1980’s the Puao-te-ata-tu report found racism to be a key factor in perpetuating issues of child abuse within the state care system (The Maori Perspective Advisory Committee, 1988). Almost a year before the Christchurch mosque shootings, internationally acclaimed Māori film director Taika Waititi famously called New Zealand ‘racist as fuck’ (Denney, 2018). This comment was by and large dismissed as ignorant or even reverse-racist. We in New Zealand seem to have an issue with believing ourselves capable of racism, while still scoffing at the opinions of groups that express that exact sentiment.

On an entirely statistical level, ethnic minorities, and particularly Māori, are often disproportionately represented in all the worst stats. Shorter life expectancy, less wealth, higher incarceration rates, lower educational qualifications, higher obesity rates, lower earnings, higher suicide rates – the list could go on (Marriot & Sim, 2014; Walters, 2018). In the face of these cold, hard facts Taika’s comment begins to make a little more sense, and the Christchurch mosque shootings begin to take on a larger significance than just a one-off event. These are all symptoms of Aotearoa New Zealand’s ongoing cognitive dissonance, the undertones of racism in our history that we have too often ignored.

Every day social workers are involved in the messy lives of those who are struggling – we get to see the reality of racism in Aotearoa New Zealand. And yet most social workers do not get involved in political change processes, where we could speak truth to the existence of racism and help create the political will and machinery to erase it (McKendrick & Webb, 2014). By and large this comes down to job descriptions. While theoretically many social workers agree that social justice and political action are part of our interests, most of us are employed to deal with individuals, perhaps their families, but nothing more (McKendrick & Webb, 2014; Staniforth, Fouché, & O’Brien, 2011). Essentially a social worker is paid to be a Good Samaritan, helping the beaten, broken, and robbed person on the side of the road out of Jerusalem. The daily grind of the caseload limits the scope of practice – we simply don’t have the energy or inclination to look at the big picture. Actions that reflect badly on the employer are discouraged, especially public acts of dissent which may put government funding at risk.

In the wake of the Christchurch mosque shootings, Aotearoa New Zealand has been forced to grapple with its racist policies and cultural undertones. There is finally an open door for social work to push against when advocating for political change. And if we don’t get involved now, then what is the price of our silence? How much more oppression, discrimination, injustice, violence, and hate must we see before we finally look beyond the victims to the oppressive policies that create them? After helping victim after victim after victim, we finally have the chance to move beyond being the Good Samaritan and point out that the whole road from Jerusalem needs to be rebuilt.

Let’s not waste our chance.

References

Denney, A (2018, April 5). Unknown Mortal orchestra & Taika Waititi on New Zealand culture [Interview]. Retrieved from https://www.dazeddigital.com/music/article/39590/1/unknown-mortal-orchestra-ruban-nielson-taika-waititi-interview

Liu, J. H., Robinson, A. R. (2016). One ring to rule them all: Master discourses of enlightenment – and racism – from colonial to contemporary New Zealand. European Journal of Social Psychology, 46(2016), 137-155. DOI:10.1002/ejsp.2141

Marriott, L., & Sim, D. (2015). Indicators of Inequality for Māori and Pacific People. Journal of New Zealand Studies, 20(2015), 24-50. Retrieved from https://ojs.victoria.ac.nz/jnzs/issue/view/469

McKendrick, D, & Webb, S. A. (2014). Taking a political stance in social work. Critical and Radical Social Work, 2(3), 357-69. DOI: 10.1332/204986014X11409655384619

Staniforth, B., Fouché, C., & O’Brien, M. (2011). Still doing what we do: Defining social work in the 21^st century. Journal of Social Work, 11(2), 191-208. DOI: 10.1177/1468017310386697

The Maori Perspective Advisory Committee (1988). Puao-te-ata-tu. Wellington, New Zealand: New Zealand Government. Retrieved from https://www.msd.govt.nz/documents/about-msd-and-our-work/publications-resources/archive/1988-puaoteatatu.pdf

Walters, L. (2018, February 9). Fact check: Disparities between Māori and Pākehā [News article]. Retrieved from https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/101231280/fact-check-disparities-between-mori-and-pkeh

Imprisonment of the Mind: A Break Up Letter

By Angela A

Psychological injury due to racism is not caused directly by one person, at one time, in one place (Speight, 2007). As the other forms of oppression such as classism and sexism, it restricts autonomy and the ability to take steps to better one’s self (Speight, 2007). Oftentimes, internalized racism is viewed as an idea of being totally responsible for the negative treatment that one receives from the dominant group, but it is much more than that. Internalized racism is a battle on two fronts. One with the oppressor within and the oppressor without (Bulhan, 1985).

The harmful thoughts I have about myself began to develop the moment my mother told me that I had to be twice as good as my counterparts to receive the same treatment despite us having identical qualifications. My feelings of worthlessness continued when I was followed in a store because it was assumed, I was a thief or even worse going to a fancy restaurant and being mistaken for the “help” because people like me couldn’t possibly afford to dine there. To add insult to injury, I am reminded of a time when I was in a high school cadet program that mimicked the United States Navy. It was an elective that I chose to take instead of gym because it was a way for me to stay fit, disciplined and be educated about my country’s history.

It took me four months to acquire a rank that I worked very hard to achieve while my classmate, a young European woman, got the same rank in three weeks. I finally realized that was what my mother had been preparing me for my entire life. She knew something that I didn’t. She knew I would be coming into a world filled with some people that didn’t like me simply for the color of my skin, sex, etc. To combat the unfair treatment, I decided to prove to my instructors that I was better than the other cadets. I was more fit, disciplined, timely, articulate and smarter. I had to be the best because that’s all I knew how to be. It’s tiring always having to prove my worth. God forbid I get upset or show any emotion from the societal pressures I endure because I will be labeled the “angry black woman” (Ashley, 2013). That’s a battle for another day.

I know what you’re thinking. Oh, poor girl. Here is another woe is me story. I really want you to understand what it’s like to feel or think you’re being policed or in danger when you aren’t. It’s like a mental game in which you’re always the loser. I know I am in Aotearoa, but my baggage from the United States has come with me. I know it isn’t fair to assume my experiences from the States are going to occur here, but it also isn’t fair to think after 30 years of negative treatment I will wake up one day and these thoughts will no longer permeate my mind. Granted racism still exist in Aotearoa, but African Americans are not treated as badly here as we are in the US.

Woodsen (1933) says:

If you can control a person’s thinking you do not have to worry about their actions. When you determine what a man (sic) shall think you do not have to concern yourself about what he will do. If you make a man (sic) feel he is inferior, you do not have to make him accept his subordinate status because it will happen automatically. If you make a man (sic) think he is an outcast, you do not have to order him to the back door. He will go without being told; and if there is no back door his very nature will demand one (in Speight 2007,p. 84-85).

I can’t lie. This hurts and it sucks. I want so badly to trust Pakeha, but Europeans in US hurt me so badly and now all Pakeha are dealing with the aftermath. Even though I am afraid, this is a breakup letter to my coping mechanisms and acceptance of internalized racism.

For connections to happen, I must allow myself to be seen (Brown, 2011). I must tell my story. I will not suffer in silence. I can feel the shackles of my mind loosen as I write this letter. I hope it sets others free.

References

Ashley, W. (2013). The Angry Black Woman: The Impact of pejorative stereotypes on psychotherapy with Black women. Social Work In Public Health, 29(1), 27-34. doi: 10.1080/19371918.2011.619449

Brown, B. (2011). The power of vulnerability. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability

Bulhan, H. A. (1985). Frantz Fanon and the psychology of oppression. New York: Plenum

Speight, S. (2007). Internalized racism: One more piece of the puzzle. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(1), 126-134. doi: 10.1177/0011000006295119

Woodsen, C. G. (1933). Miseducation of the negro. Washington, DC: Associated Press.

Representation of Māori through media

By Brooke Royal

Māori to me is whānau; iwi, my land, my ancestors and my blood connections. Māori to others are unemployed gang members who have a drug and alcohol problem, who live off the benefit and beat their Mrs. because she didn’t make him eggs. When I think of Māori, I think of my loving whānau who work their butts off and live good lives, but the next person may look at my whānau and think of them as nothing but a suspect off Police Ten 7, as the suspect was of Māori descent.

Most people living in Aotearoa will enjoy their Thursday evenings watching Police Ten 7 and laughing with disgrace. Yet, have we noticed that they are describing most suspects as of Māori descent? Is it because of their darker complexion, particular tattoos, bigger build or that they were wearing a hoodie that makes them Māori? If this hasn’t sparked a light bulb in your head, how about Jake the Muss from Once Were Warriors? I personally believe that this is an awesome movie however the picture it paints in the minds of non-Māori is the wrong way Māori need to be represented. Police Ten 7 and Once Were Warriors are extremely popular across Aotearoa, but they are representing Māori as nothing but criminals, gang members, unemployed alcoholics who have multiple children and live in poverty. Another example of this discrimination toward Māori is through news articles. A recent article written by NZ Herald (2019) discussed how tobacco, alcohol and gambling tax is costing Māori over $1 billion a year. Throughout the article, they continued to compare Māori to European New Zealanders, and each time Māori were portrayed as the minority between the two.

“The Māori adult (15 years and over) population of 517,000 was less than one fifth of the European/Other population of 2.8m, but Māori tobacco consumption made up just under half (45%) of European/Other tobacco expenditure” (NZ Herald, 2019). Representations of Māori, and our stories, remain under the control of Pākehā-owned television, radio, and print media (Aoake, 2017). Discrimination toward Māori through the media continues to happen time and time again, that so many of us have become blind to the intolerance.

It has been 179 years since Te Tiriti o Waitangi was created and signed, and to this day Māori are still discriminated against. The Ministry of Health (2012) identified that Māori adults were almost twice as likely as non-Māori adults to have experienced any type of racial discrimination. Following this, Māori adults were almost three times as likely as non-Māori adults to have experienced any unfair treatment on the basis of ethnicity. Within the social work profession Māori are the most dominant ethnicity group we will work with, and as a Māori myself I know that there is a lot of whakamā that comes with seeking help or being told that you need help. This whakamā that Māori feel is the baggage we hold realising that we are a minority in our own country and on our own land. On the other hand, the whakamā Māori are living with will also be what prevents them reaching out for support when they are vulnerable. As social workers, we need to take into consideration how this ethnic group is treated and also portrayed within our communities and through our media, and how this may impact their overall wellbeing. For Māori, mainstream media is mired in colonial framing, misrepresentation and exclusion – yet mainstream media continues to insist its coverage is non-partisan (Aoake, 2017). []

The representation of Māori being portrayed through media is only contributing to the racial discrimination this ethnic group already receives. The whakamā Māori carry due to being marginalised in their own country will only worsen if media continue to drag them through the mud. My concerns with this is around the future for our Māori whanau, and the racial discrimination and whakamā our people are holding, potentially preventing them from reaching out for help when they are vulnerable.

Naku te rourou nau te rourou ka ora ai te iwi.
With your basket and my basket, the people will live.

Aoake, M. (2017, 14 August) Metiria Turei and how the NZ media ignores its own prejudice. Vice. Retrieved from https://www.vice.com/en_nz/article/ywwdpv/metiria-turei-and-how-the-nz-media-ignores-its-own-prejudice

Ministry of Health. (2012). Racial discrimination. Retrieved June 2, 2019, from https://www.health.govt.nz/our-work/populations/maori-health/tatau-kahukura-maori-health-statistics/nga-awe-o-te-hauora-socioeconomic-determinants-health/racial-discrimination

Tobacco, alcohol and gambling tax costing māori over $1b a year (2019, May 13), New Zealand Herald, Retrieved from https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12230415

‘Are we there yet? Becoming a harmonious multicultural society’

By ssungeunee

“One of New Zealand’s darkest days” (Ardern, 2019), in the aftermath of the Christchurch terror attack on 15 March 2019, we gathered as one to express our respect, anger, aroha, and solidarity towards our Muslim community. Also, we engaged with a thought that the acts of racism and hatred and devastating terror were done by a white supremacist individual.

Now, we are looking at nearly three months toward this massacre, victims and their families are enduring through hard times and recovering their physical, emotional, and cultural injuries. The government has shown its move to provide support for the victims such as assigning individual case managers, giving residency visas to the victims and their families, and changing in gun laws. Also, setting up an Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate the specific circumstances that lead to the attack. The public has shown empathy towards shooting victims and the wider Muslim community by using their social media network and donating towards any supports they need. However, not everyone got it right; some of them were displaying ‘fake sympathy’ to commercialise their personal promotion in their social media and there were endless political and racial comments about the victims. Do our prejudices and racial stereotypes ignore to acknowledge the severity of impacts on those people?

Moreover, we can question ourselves that there are further issues that surround the person to commit such a horrific act towards vulnerable people who were just in the ordinary times of their lives. This act cannot come out by overnight; it was the result of the deep-seated Islamophobia, hatred of immigrants, the politics of economic and racial fears that our society is exposed from the populist politics and media influences (Hyslop, 2019). In the mass media’s construction of immigrants they are often represented as an exotic or threatening another group, which produces racist imagery that transforms into negative stereotypes, prejudices, and discourses that frame them into a homogenous group (Spoonley & Butcher, 2009). We desire to separate, establish borders between who we deem different and alarm us to be away from the groups which we label to be a danger for us (Stanley, 2019). As a society, we must reflect on the structural and societal underpinnings of this terror and address how unconscious racism arises into our society to neglect the shared humanity (Hyslop, 2019; Stanley, 2019).

Aotearoa New Zealand is becoming one of the diverse countries in the world. Currently, the net migration rates are estimated at 56,100 (Statistics New Zealand, 2019). More and different people are coming in and settling in this country, and people in New Zealand may feel uncomfortable being bombarded with different ethnicities. They may feel their workplace and economy are threatened by the intruder. But, this cannot be the reason for an extraordinary act of terror. As an immigrant, living in New Zealand for almost twenty years holding New Zealand passport, I cannot say that Aotearoa was always a welcoming country for me. I am no stranger to racist comments, gestures, and looks which, I have encountered over the last twenty years from primary age till now. This is one of the reasons why I choose to study social work; I acknowledge where there is a difference, there is a potential oppression for a particular group to be different such it is not specifically oppressed on immigrants, moreover, there are discrimination in age, disability, sexuality, religion, gender, and race. So, what can we do?

In moving forward, the question we must ask ourselves now is what we can do differently to ensure this unprecedented act does not repeat itself. We need to be aware that the actions of this terror and unconscious racism are strongly connected. Our roles are pivotal to engage different ethnic groups together becoming a harmonious multicultural society. Whether you are Maori, Pakeha, Asian or Middle Eastern we are no different; we may perceive different values, beliefs, and protocols, however, we cannot judge each person as what construction of social world defines to be. The basis of the global definition of the social work profession emphasises on the promotion of human rights, social cohesion, collective responsibility, and respect for diversities (IFSW, 2014). We, as social workers, need to be prepared to incorporate multicultural practice, which we are aware of balancing the cultural differences but also knowing the sociopolitical dimensions that are affecting the person.

Kia kaha

References

Ardern, J. (2019, March 15). Statement from Jacinda Ardern on Christchurch shootings. Retrieved from https://www.beehive.govt.nz/release/statement-  jacinda-ardern-christchurch-shootings

Hyslop, I. (2019, March 20). Aftermath [Blog post]. Retrieved from http:// http://www.reimaginingsocialwork.nz/2019/03/aftermath/

International Federation of Social Workers. (2014, August 6). Global Definition of Social Work– International Federation of Social Workers. Retrieved from https://www.ifsw.org/global-definition-of-social-work/

Parliamentary Counsel Office. (2019, April 8). Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Attack on Christchurch Mosques on 15 March 2019 Order 2019 (LI 2019/72) Contents – New Zealand Legislation. Retrieved from http://www.legislation.govt.nz/regulation/public/2019/0072/12.0/LMS183988.h   tml

Salter, C. (2019, March 22). Social responsibility: Facebook in the aftermath of the Christchurch mosque terror attack. Retrieved from https://stoppress.co.nz/features/social-responsibility-facebook-in-the aftermath-of-the-christchurch-mosque-terror-attack

Spoonley, P., & Butcher, A. (2009). Reporting superdiversity. The mass media and immigration in New Zealand. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 30(4), 355-372. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/07256860903213638

Stanley, E. (2019, March 21). How expressions of white supremacy seep through our society [Opinion]. Retrieved from http:// https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/21-03-2019/how-expressions-of-white-supremacy-seep-through-our-society/

Statistics New Zealand. (2019, May 14). Net migration provisionally at 56,100. Retrieved from https://www.stats.govt.nz/news/net-migration-provisionally-at- 56100

Discourse, stereotypes and social work

By Kex

If you drive a motor vehicle in New Zealand, it is undeniable that people perceive the Chinese population as “bad drivers”, and make assumptions based on ethnicity. However, “according to the data, of the 378 road deaths in 2017, 34 people died in 25 crashes that involved a foreign driver. The foreign driver was at fault in 18 of those.” (NZ Herald, 2019 ). This statistic shows that foreign drivers only contribute to less than five per cent of the road toll deaths in New Zealand, while New Zealand citizens were at fault for over 95 per cent road accidents.

Let us have a look at other ethnicities and the stereotypes surrounding them. As for the indigenous people of New Zealand, Māori, common stereotypes suggest the public tends to think that the Māori population usually involves gang association, violence, and criminal activity. Contrasting perceptions for Pasifika people, people tend to have a stereotype of, labelling Pasifika people as lazy, poor and rely on welfare support. As for Muslim people, the public stereotypes those as having refugee status, and terrorist association (Kino, 2019 ). As a Chinese female myself, who has a Māori partner, the first question that some of my friends have asked me has been “Did he ever hit you?”. I do not blame my friends because they care about me and are concerned about my wellbeing. However, this makes me sad and I realise the level of stereotyping in New Zealand, and the assumptions people hold true based on ethnicity, religion, and culture.

Reflecting on social work practice, there are also many stereotypical discourses surrounding social workers, particularly for social workers in the child protection field. According to Mason (2018): “Too much coverage in the press fuels the myth we are a sinister arm of the state, focused on the systematic removal of children.” . This stereotype of child protection social workers can have a very negative effect. Due to the stereotype, clients tend not to trust or cooperate with social workers, which have led some social workers to respond in an assertive manner with the use of statutory power (Quick & Scott, 2018). Thus, a vicious cycle has formed in the child protection field.

However, where do all these stereotypes come from? From my perspective, mass media has contributed to a wide range of stereotypes in New Zealand. When searching for road toll deaths in New Zealand on Google, many media outlets reported with a pronounced title of “Chinese driver”, while almost none of the news items indicated a New Zealand driver was at fault when a car accident happened. In this case, the public tends to believe that New Zealanders usually are the victims of car accidents, and Chinese drivers “rip and destroy families”. Similarly, the media tend to implicate “Māori” when a violent or criminal action takes place, while Pākehā New Zealand ethnicity is seldom identified in the media.

Looking back at the horrific and heart-breaking terrorist attack which happened in Christchurch this year, it is the first time that mainstream media focused on Muslim families and reported about their struggles (Kino, 2019 ). Flowers were piled in front of mosques and many anti-racism posters were put on the streets. I feel like this is the first time since I moved to New Zealand that the voice of Muslim people was acknowledged. Before this tragic incident happened, the voices of Muslim people were disregarded and the media spoke heavily of terrorism when they mentioned Muslim people. (Kino, 2019)

Stereotyping is a serious issue that we need to be aware of, and we as social workers need to be dedicated to eliminating stereotyping altogether. Stereotyping is so close and connected to social work practice that sometimes you might not even realise it when you are doing it. As a social work student, I remember the first day I started my degree at the University of Auckland, a Māori lecturer asked the class a question: “What do you think are stereotypes about Māori?”. The consensus was that Māori stereotypes were “violent”, “homeless”, “lazy”, “criminals” and “alcoholics”. Many answers were negative toward the Māori population, with only a few positive comments provided. The Māori lecturer then said: “As social workers, we are here to reduce those stereotypes, and hopefully one day, when I ask the same question again, there will be more positive comments about us. When that day comes, we as social workers can finally say that we have done our jobs.”.

Reference

Kino, S. (2019, March 23). I’m struggling to be a journalist in New Zealand right now [Blog Post]. Retrieved from https://thespinoff.co.nz/society/23-03-2019/im-struggling-to-be-a-journalist-in-new-zealand-right-now/

Mason, S. (2018, May 16). A warped view of social work in the media is unfair – and dangerous. [Blog Post]. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/social-care-network/social-life-blog/2018/may/16/media-social-work-press-state-children

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