Leonie Hayden 
A recent Twitter thread, which asked Pākehā who are learning te reo to be gentle with Māori who don’t know the language, sparked a lot of conversation. Ātea editor Leonie Hayden reflects on her own experience, and offers some advice. It was a Pākehā friend who first told me that it wasn’t appropriate for her … Read more
Women and non-binary people in the music industry have spoken out about how cis-gendered men can make their jobs safer. Content warning: sexual assault, harassment and discrimination. *Some names have been changed. Yesterday an open letter penned by musician Anna Coddington (Ngāti Tūwharetoa, Te Arawa) was made public amid the fallout of Alison Mau’s exposé for … Read more
Care is at the centre of Auckland Zoo’s mandate, and it’s clear to see when you witness the staff doing their day-to-day jobs up close. Leonie Hayden went behind the scenes to talk to two people who would do anything for the animals they look after. “We were having this big discussion at morning … Read more
An Auckland bar attracted heat last month for hosting a US election party attended by MAGA hat-wearing Trump supporters. Three former employees have come forward to say that incident is the least of its issues. Former staff of popular Auckland bar Hoppers have come forward with allegations about the working environment they encountered there, including … Read more
A morning spent exploring the new Toi Tū Toi Ora Māori contemporary art exhibition at Auckland Art Gallery with curator Nigel Borell stirred up many complex feelings, writes Ātea editor Leonie Hayden. Te ihi, te wehi, te wana are concepts in te ao Māori that provide a handy vocabulary, lacking in English, for describing great … Read more
Stuff’s Pou Tiaki editor Carmen Parahi rallied her troops for what would become the ‘Our Truth, Tā Mātou Pono’ project on a Saturday, and pitched the idea to Stuff’s CEO the very next day. She tells Leonie Hayden about what happened next. On Monday the media-consuming public awoke to a surprise from Stuff, whose comments … Read more
Leonie Hayden gets in her feelings about a shitty day for Māori women. There are days in my job where I feel nothing but hopeful. Like when I think about the work being done by Nuku100, telling the stories of 100 indigenous women. Or I get to wānanga with Donna Kerridge and Ayla Hoeta, or … Read more
Profiling 100 indigenous women – how hard can it be? Very bloody hard, it turns out. But worth every sacrifice, says Qiane Matata-Sipu. Qiane Matata-Sipu is many things to many people. She’s a journalist who has written for this very website. She’s an award-winning photographer. She’s an activist and one of the land protectors at … Read more
The comedian stars opposite Matthew Lewis, the artist formerly known as Neville Longbottom, in a charming new New Zealand comedy about a pregnant woman completely losing her shit. Recently I watched all of series one of Duchess, the Netflix vehicle of comedian Katherine Ryan, based on her life as an unconventional single mother. I’m a … Read more
The Māori seats were electrifying to watch as the results rolled in on Saturday. Here’s what happened. Labour no longer has a monopoly on the seven Māori seats – for now. First-timer Rāwiri Waititi snatched Waiariki from one-term MP Tamati Coffey in a nail-biting neck and neck race, coming out ahead by only 415 votes … Read more
Some nail-biting battles are brewing in the Māori seats – here’s a primer so you know what to keep an eye out for as the results start rolling in. Candidates from four different parties have stood in the seat of Te Tai Tokerau since MMP was introduced. While Labour’s Kelvin Davis has polled streaks ahead … Read more
Welcome to The Spinoff’s Election Live for October 9, bringing you the latest on election 2020 and other NZ news. The essential campaign dates are here. For all you need to know about the cannabis referendum click here. For the assisted dying referendum click here. Explore the parties’ pledges at Policy. Stewart is off today so Leonie … Read more
Voting is under way in the New Zealand general election. Explore the main parties’ pledges at Policy.nz, but here’s a whistlestop tour of what parties are promising on issues that affect Māori. Read more two-minute policy wraps here Te ao Māori is a fairly uneven policy area – the Māori Party lists more than 80 separate policies, … Read more
From Te Rerenga Wairua at the top of the country, right down to Rakiura, we’re taking a look at our seven Māori electorates and the candidates contesting the seats. In this edition: the ‘super city’ electorate of Tāmaki Makaurau. Tāmaki Makaurau is a completely urban electorate, centred on greater Auckland south of the Harbour Bridge. … Read more
A tragedy in four parts. INT. DIMLY LIT BASEMENT – MORNING Danny awakens and kicks off his Star Wars duvet. He picks up his phone to check if anyone responded to his incendiary revelation about Jacinda Ardern’s Covid-19 mind control experiment on Reddit last night. He stares at his phone in mute horror. There at … Read more
From Te Rerenga Wairua at the top of the country, right down to Rakiura, we’re taking a look at our seven Māori electorates and the candidates contesting the seats. First up: the electorate of Te Tai Tokerau. Te Tai Tokerau is our northern-most Māori electorate. Its boundary begins on the north side of the Auckland … Read more
Jacinda Ardern and Judith Collins showed their true colours in the first leaders’ debate, and they were pretty pale. Last night I settled in on the couch with a beer and takeaways, and watched an engaging, rambunctious and focused political debate. It was entertaining but also challenging and informative, and covered the critical issues facing … Read more
Te reo Māori is a taonga and the government of this country is compelled under the Treaty of Waitangi to protect it. So how do the campaign policies of our political parties stack up? In 1985, the Waitangi Tribunal report on the Wai 11 te reo claim found that article two of the Treaty of … Read more
Activist and former politician Sue Bradford has been called an ‘angry radical’ most of her life. Leonie Hayden caught up with her to find out how she uses that anger for good. Watch On the Rag: Anger (full episode) here When I was tasked with thinking of women I admire that have been called “angry” … Read more
For 71 days, protesters have been locked in a battle with contractors to save 26 native trees in the Auckland suburb of Avondale. The fight to save 26 100-year-old native trees – what remains of an original 46 – came to a head this morning when more than 200 people showed up to prevent diggers … Read more
Kewana Duncan, who made his film-writing and directing debut in the tele-film Toke, chats to Leonie Hayden about his career trajectory and how he’s keeping it tika. Kewana Duncan is a new face in the film and television landscape, but he’s no Johnny-come-lately. The writer and director first got his break storylining for Shortland Street … Read more
Major reports published in the New Zealand Medical Journal today highlight ongoing inequity for Māori in health. Two papers published today, written by a combined 16 Māori and non-Māori academics and researchers, uphold what is known to be true by many: that Māori and Pasefika experience different health outcomes to everyone else. The first, a … Read more
Listening and hanging out are small acts that make a huge difference for young people facing challenges. Dietrich Soakai has 15 years’ experience working in youth services, and doesn’t think children are our future leaders… he thinks they’re leaders in their own right, here and now. “I genuinely believe in young people. I believe in … Read more
The two week jail sentence handed out to the woman who breached isolation with her grieving children is an abomination, writes Leonie Hayden. In a week where New Zealanders are celebrating the prison sentence of a monster who murdered 51 people, we all need to think hard about what we’re celebrating. I choose to leave … Read more
At 40 years old, filmmaker Rachel Judkins decided it was finally time to confront her hang-ups around talking about her period. It’s easy to imagine that everything you could say about periods has already been said. About Bloody Time!, an entry in this year’s collection of Loading Docs short documentaries, holds up a mirror to … Read more
A number of Māori and Pacific leaders are concerned that the government’s response to the resurgence of Covid-19 won’t be enough to protect their communities. Where the first Covid-19 outbreaks were predominantly among those who had travelled overseas, largely missing communities with high-density Māori and Pacific populations, the latest outbreak originating in South Auckland has … Read more
Coronavirus is back in our community, bringing with it anxiety, fear and uncertainty. If you’re feeling like you can’t face going through it all over again, here are some coping strategies. Aucklanders are once again being asked to dig deep, emotionally speaking, in preparation for another lockdown and the accompanying uncertainty. The country is still … Read more
She’s a lone wolf, a team player, a rebel, a leader and the nicest lady around. But what combination of those do you need to survive in government? On a cold July morning, I found myself driving around Tōtara Park in Manurewa in the dark. I had been invited to a dawn karakia to launch … Read more
A new sketch show on Comedy Central has heralded a new era for Pacific voices. But it’s not all big laughs and dick jokes – it’s much more sophisticated than that. The trailer for new comedy sketch show Sis, released in late June, is bloody funny. As a good trailer should, it takes some of … Read more