The Waxing and Waning of the Politics of Authenticity: The Situation of Urban‐Based Māori through the Lens of Municipal Politics

Abstract

In Aotearoa/New Zealand, during the period known as the M aori cultural renaissance, developing rhetoric about M aori authenticity has emphasized distinctions between tribal and urban M aori. This has been in part due to the juridification of M aori property by the state and the concomitant retribalization. In recent years, however, there are signs that this essentializing tendency might be lessening as the passing of time has brought M aori successes in many fields. The process of reasserting themselves and renegotiating their relations with non-M aori involves issues of participation and political representation, including at the local government level. This paper looks at these changes and at the debate around M aori representation on Auckland's new Super City Council and the resulting present situation. It shows that concerns about authenticity wax and wane, depending on the larger political context. [M aori, New Zealand, authenticity, political representation, local government]

Who Counts as an Authentic Indigenous? Collective Identity Negotiations in the Chilean Urban Context

“…This has resulted in a conditioning of Indigenous peoples to live up to ideologies of authenticity from which the non-Indigenous society is excluded. As a result, Indigenous dwellers in cities are perceived as less authentic, less legitimate and an even more dysfunctional people (Gagné, 2016). As Smith (2012) maintains, this conception limits contemporary Indigenous actors' agency and options by establishing expectations of authenticity combined with accusations of identity invention and illegitimacy.…”

“…By doing this, the nation-state denies the actual existence of Indigenous peoples who have been able to overcome the forces of colonialism by adapting to the new historical circumstances. Framed by an international Indigenous movement mostly articulated from the rural setting to secure lands, natural resources and a legal framework that reproduces colonial-based ideologies (Gagné, 2016), Indigenous peoples worldwide have frequently adopted an essentialist stance on the homeland as a strategy of resistance ‘against national governments and multinational corporations’ (Watson, 2010: 272). The Mapuche have not been alien to these claims.…”

Kaitiakitanga, place and the urban restoration agenda

“…However, in recent decades a large proportion of Māori migrated to cities with the result that more than 80% of Māori now reside in urban spaces in New Zealand (Ryks et al 2016). This urban group includes both mana whenua (local Māori tribal groups) and mātāwaka (Māori from other regions) (Statistics New Zealand 2013; Gagné 2016;Ryks et al 2016). The speed and scale of this demographic rural-urban transition means that some aspects of traditional Māori culture (such as kaitiakitanga) are still adapting to the changes in social structure and identity that urbanisation has demanded.…”

Auckland: Rescaled governance and post-suburban politics

“…Political representation of Māori in Auckland takes the form of an independent board tasked with ensuring that Auckland Council comply with statutory provisions in the Treaty of Waitangi 1 and advising on issues that affect the Māori popu-lation. The Royal Commission recommended three Māori council members on the governing body, however this was not adopted by the central government, and Māori representation remains limited (Gagné, 2016).…”

“…A large share of New Zealand's Māori population migrated to urban centres over the 20th century, accompanied by policies which undermined social structures and cultural practices (Barcham, 1998). Currently, urban Māori experience poorer outcomes for education, housing quality, and health in New Zealand cities and urban governance faces a challenge to recognise the needs and heterogeneity across urban Māori populations (Gagné, 2016;Ryks et al, 2016).…”