In the weeks after the Christchurch we’ve seen those who continue to seek profit from hate. But we’ve also seen an awakening of sorts, and that is where the hope is, writes Anjum Rahman We barely had time to take a breath from the tragedy in our own country, when another happened in Sri Lanka. In … Read more
As New Zealand remembers those lives lost in 20-century wars, New Zealand actor Michael Hurst reflects upon wars dating back millennia, and the role of storytelling in remembrance and resistance. Tomorrow, I begin a five day-intensive rehearsal process for An Iliad by Lisa Petersen and Denis O’Hare. I performed it a year ago in Dunedin and … Read more
Attendees at the country’s largest and longest-running pop culture convention have complained about the presence of merchandise featuring sexualized underage anime characters. Life-size body pillows featuring underage characters, mystery merchandise bags containing panty shots of underage characters, and “Hentai clothing” were among the stock for sale at the recent Armageddon Expo in Wellington. Armageddon founder … Read more
A year ago Chamanthie Sinhalage was in Sri Lanka, where she had travelled from New Zealand for her wedding. Today, she is coming to terms with a horrific terrorist attack in her birth country, just a few weeks after the atrocity in Christchurch. Last month, as the scale of the Christchurch mosque shootings started to … Read more
‘I swallowed my fear because I’m a teacher. And it’s my job to protect the children in my care and school at all costs,’ writes Margie Askin-Jarden, deputy principal of a school in Ōtautahi Christchurch. I didn’t plan on becoming a teacher. I wanted to be an educational psychologist. I dutifully completed my university degree, … Read more
Is it possible to be in a non-monogamous relationship without anyone involved getting hurt? Absolutely, say many New Zealanders practising polyamory, open relationships, swinging, and “relationship anarchy”. For her Bang! podcast series exploring modern sexuality, RNZ’s Melody Thomas spoke to some of them. In the US, it’s estimated that about 4 to 5 percent of … Read more
Despite unequivocal statements from French authorities that they believe the Notre Dame fire was accidental, far-right personalities are claiming it was arson. Marc Daalder explains why. It didn’t take long. Within hours of the news breaking of a devastating fire at the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris, far-right leaders were leaping on it, using dog … Read more
Indigenous people have always had ecological perspectives on health, which have only recently entered ‘mainstream’ discourse, and the scope now is planetary health, writes Rebekah Jaung. Good intentions pave the road to inequity in health systems around the world. Whether it’s healthy eating guidelines that would require poor families to spend almost all their income … Read more
Flatting comes with a lot of headaches, but none more stressful than a flatmate who owes you rent money. Erin Gourley talked to some students whose flatmates bailed, and found out what your rights are if the same thing happens to you. This story originally appeared in Critic Te Arohi, the Otago University student magazine. … Read more
The author of the wildly popular Wonky Donkey children’s book is facing criticisms over a 2008 song about golliwogs. Craig Smith, author of Wonky Donkey, a children’s book about a three-legged donkey, is facing criticisms over a music video entitled “Gollywog Song”, which was originally posted online 10 years ago. The video, uploaded to Smith’s Youtube account, shows … Read more
Reports broke this morning that a New Zealand Red Cross nurse had been captured by ISIS militants in Syria in 2013, and she had been held in captivity ever since. So who is Louisa Akavi? Kim Griggs reports in this piece first published by Radio NZ. A New Zealand nurse kidnapped by Islamic State devoted her … Read more
On Thursday, the exhibition Mandela: My Life was officially opened at Eden Park, where in 1981 the All Blacks test against the Springboks was disrupted by flour bombs and flares. By then, Robert Burgess’s All Blacks career was long over, having been cut short by his refusal to play against apartheid teams. This is his … Read more
Beatings, unhygienic overcrowding, no ventilation and bad food: Welcome to one Kiwi’s experience of a prison in Thailand. This piece was originally published by Newshub. Thomas Tana had really messed up bad this time. Being led by guards to his cell at the Immigration Detention Centre in Bangkok, he didn’t know what to expect. He … Read more
In the latest episode of her RNZ podcast BANG! Melody Thomas speaks with kinky Kiwis about what they’re into, how they negotiate consent, and what vanilla relationships could learn from their communities. Kink is described as activities and fantasies falling outside of the “normal” boundaries of sex and intimacy. But what is normal? Light choking … Read more
More survivors of sexual violence at Knox College have come forward since Critic broke the story of sexual abuse and harassment at the Otago University hall of residence a month ago. Content warning: sexual assault and harassment. This story is published today in Critic Te Arohi, the Otago University student magazine. Original reporting by Esme Hall … Read more
What does an ageing population actually mean in an economic context, and are we thinking about it all wrong? Experts Warren Sanderson and Sergei Scherbov weigh in. This piece was originally published on The Conversation. In 1950, men and women at age 65 could expect to live about 11 years more on average. Today, that number … Read more
Our current understanding of infertility is limited and leads to unfair stigma, Hannah Gibson writes. Ask most people what they think infertility is, then they will most likely answer ‘it is when you can’t have children.’ It is nearly always contexualised contrary to the idea of ‘fertility’, sitting in opposing categories and corners from one … Read more
A new Gambling Advertising Code has been announced that closes a loophole which saw offshore online casinos preying on vulnerable Kiwi gamblers while local operators were shut out. In May last year, a Spinoff investigation found JackpotCity, one of five online casinos operated by a shady ‘global gaming and entertainment group’ licensed in Malta, … Read more
There is a ‘climate of fear’ and a rising white supremacist movement on campus, say a group of students at the University of Auckland. Don Rowe reports. Students at the University of Auckland met last night to discuss what they say is a growing white supremacist movement on campus, and their concerns the university is dragging … Read more
Cheat sheet: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has finally been forced out of his cupboard in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. But why now? And what is he actually facing charges on? Alex Braae has a cheat sheet for you. What’s all this then? Overnight, a bearded and haunted looking Julian Assange was dragged (yes, literally) … Read more
There’s something about universities that make entitled young men feel safe pushing the boundary between consensual sex and rape – and it has to change, writes Jai Breitnauer. Admittedly, when I saw my old higher education institute, the University of Warwick, hit UK headlines earlier this year over a group rape chat scandal, I wasn’t … Read more
Living in a city polluted with dirty air is among many facts of life that Londoners pay for, not just with money but with our health, writes Elle Hunt. There is a company that sells aerosols of “100% pure Australian air”, “farmed” from pristine locations including Tasmania and the Blue Mountains, for AU $246.24 for … Read more
News that the family of a Christchurch mosque shooting victim is struggling financially has reignited controversy about how the millions raised in the wake of the tragedy are being spent. But, as professional fundraiser Jemma Balmer argues, are we asking the wrong questions? Grief and solidarity swept New Zealand in the days following the mosque … Read more
Neighbours of New Zealand’s biggest shooting range say they’re victims of targeted harassment, including Nazi symbols scrawled on a resident’s property. Police, they say, have not taken their concerns seriously. The Auckland Shooting Club, in response, says it’s being ‘victimised’. Don Rowe reports. Update 11/4 8am – Auckland Shooting Club president Chris Gee has resigned. … Read more
When we arrived to live in New Zealand we were shocked to discover how tolerant many people were of flagrant expression of neo-Nazism, writes Anke Richter When we migrated to New Zealand 16 years ago as a family, many things were different to our old life. Bus drivers were friendly. “North facing” meant sunny and … Read more
In the same week that a woman was told her bikini was “inappropriate” to wear at an Auckland pool, Alex Casey provides some much-needed reminders for women wearing clothes everywhere. Women, you probably already know this but… you’re wrong. Your clothes are wrong, your togs are wrong, whatever you are wearing on your head is … Read more
Later this year, Jennifer Gunter’s new book The Vagina Bible: The Vulva and the Vagina, Separating the Myth from the Medicine is published. In this post from 2017, Gunter – who speaks in Auckland tonight – explains the thinking behind it If you have never seen a bottle of lube on the nightstand in the … Read more
A new campaign launches today making the case for a capital gains tax. Tax Justice Aotearoa’s Louise Delany and Paul Barber explain what they’re up to In the din of the current tax debate, there are voices that have largely gone unheard: hundreds of thousands of ordinary New Zealanders who believe the time is right … Read more
The pain of endometriosis can be utterly debilitating. Susie Ferguson asks why so many women and girls are expected simply to put up with it. It started when I was 14 years old. The first mention of dysmenorrhea in the ream of paper that is my medical records – that was the first time I went … Read more