Colonising Myths – Māori Realities: He Rukuruku Whakaaro—Ani Mikaere (2011)
This book brings together a series of papers by Ani Mikaere that reflect on the effect of Pākehā law, legal processes and teaching on Māori legal thought and practice.
Publication details
Mikaere, A. Colonising Myths—Māori Realities: He Rukuruku Whakaaro. Wellington: Huia Publishers, 2011.
About the book
"The complicity of Crown Law in the oppression of Māori is undeniable. It is therefore profoundly illogical for us to look to that same law for answers to any of the contemporary ills that plague us." So says Ani Mikaere (Ngāti Raukawa, Ngāti Porou) in her book Colonising Myths – Māori Realities: He Rukuruku Whakaaro. Mikaere discusses issues such as the illogicality of seeking justice for Māori within the confines of the coloniser’s law and the importance of reinstating tikanga at the heart of Māori thinking. Mikaere also examines the myths that have been constructed to obscure the true nature of the Crown–Māori relationship as it was established in 1840 and the insidious effect of Pākehā thought on Māori conceptions of reality.
Mikaere is currently Kaihautū of Te Whare Whakatupu Mātauranga at Te Wānanga o Raukawa and Director of the Māori Laws and Philosophy programme.
Further information
This publication is part of the series Te Takarangi: Celebrating Māori publications - a sample list of 150 non-fiction books produced by a partnership between Royal Society Te Apārangi and Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga.