Volume 80 | Issue 17

SALIENT

14 AUGUST 2017

ENROL BY 23 AUGUST AND MAKE VOTING EASY. elections.org.nz 0800 36 76 56

Visit any Wednesday in August and pay only $6/child and $12/adult wellingtonzoo.com

Editors — Tuioleloto Laura Toailoa and Tim Manktelow

Contact — editor@salient.org.nz 04 463 6766 Level 2, Student Union Building Victoria University of Wellington PO Box 600, Wellington

Designers — Eun Sun Jeong and Ellyse Randrup News Editor — Brigid Quirke News Reporters — Harry Clatworthy, Henry Badenhorst Juer, Matt Currill, Samantha Gordon, Tharisheka Mohan Feature Writers — Ataria Rangipikitia Sharman, Brodie Fraser, Dan Kelly, Cameron Gray Chief Sub-Editor — Georgia Lockie Distributor — Darren Chin Arts Editor — Cameron Gray Section Editors — Annelise Bos (Podcast), Cameron Gray (Games), Finn Holland and Mathew Watkins (Film), Hanahiva Rose (Visual Art), Katie Meadows (Television), Kimberley McIvor (Books), Olly Clifton and Lauren Spring (Music), Emilie Hope (Theatre) Contributors — Aidan Kelly, Caitlin Penrose, Rory Lenihan-Ikin, Raven Maeder, Jasmine Koria, Kate Aschoff, Lilli Street, Emma Wollum, Sasha Beattie, Joe Morris, Tim Overton, Andrew Witty, Kimberley McIvor, Alex Feinson, Puck, Aubergine and Celeste

Printing — Service Printers 258 Taranaki Street, Wellington Paper — Sun 90gsm Salient is printed on environmentally sustainable paper, with vegetable ink, and is completely FSC approved.

Typefaces — Wedge by Bruce Rotherham, Adobe Caslon Pro by Carol Twombly About Us — Salient staff are employed by, but editorially independent from, the Victoria University of Wellington Students’ Association (VUWSA).

Salient is a member of, syndicated, and supported by the Aotearoa Student Press Association (ASPA).

Salient is partially funded by Victoria University students, through the student levy. Opinions expressed are not necessarily representative of those of VUWSA, ASPA, Service Printers, or the editorial staff.

Complaints — Please email editor@ salient.org.nz and if not satisfied with response contact VUWSA. Salient — 14 August, 2017 Volume 80, Issue 17

Advertising — Grace Gollan grace.gollan@vuwsa.org.nz 04 463 6982

CONTRIBUTORS & COLOPHON

CONTENTS Editors’ Letter.......................................8 Letters................................................60 Notices................................................61 News General News.....................................10

Features To name the world.............................28 — Ataria Rangipikitia Sharman Locked Out........................................34 — Brodie Fraser

Politics Political Round-Up.............................14 The Party Line....................................15

To Each Their Own: New Models for Water Care...................................40 — Dan Kelly

Interview Geoff Simmons...................................16

Aspie on Campus...............................44 — Cameron Gray

Opinion “godDAMN this stupid milkloving piece of shit dumbass mean spirited sale at briscoes racist sexist 40% off deck furniture piss country” — Hera Lindsay Bird.......................................13 — EAT

Trying to Address Your Own Mental Health in NZ.........................20 — Caitlin Penrose Columns VUWSA.............................................22 Te Ara Tauira......................................23 One Ocean..........................................23 Shit Chat............................................24 From within the fallout zone..............25 The Queer Agenda..............................26 Access Denied.....................................26 Postgrad Informer...............................27

Arts Poem ................................................. 49 Film....................................................50 Visual Art...........................................51 Books..................................................52 Theatre...............................................53 Music..................................................54 Podcast...............................................55 Television...........................................56 Games................................................57 Puzzles................................................62 Horoscope..........................................63

HAVE YOUR SAY AND WIN

Check your inbox now and complete the Student Voice—Have Your Say survey. It’s your opportunity to rate your experience at Victoria. ► You’ll go into the draw to win a range of prizes, including an iPhone 7. victoria.ac.nz/student-voice-survey

dream explore connect 7

News

with

New Zealand’s

Ultimate Youth Travel Card #DreamExploreConnect

Includes youth airfares and dining discounts across NZ and Oz.

www.yha.co.nz

12 MONTH WORK VISA

WWW.IEP.CO.NZ | 0800 443 769

8

Editors’ letter A lot has happened over the last week. Both of us are tired, stressed, and on edge. But we’ve made it to another print day, and the sun isn’t completely hidden behind the clouds.

In planning this issue we thought about participation — what is needed to participate, who is allowed to, what barriers there are, how can these be overcome.

The pieces this week tackle some of these ideas.

Ataria looks at Paulo Freire’s Pedagogy of the Oppressed and its ongoing relevance in contemporary Aotearoa. Freire saw how education could enable those who suffer under society’s systemic oppression to creatively transform their world, and how poverty adds barriers to that education.

Cameron outlines his experience of university as a student with Asperger’s, and reflects how “...a system that only rewards those who can hack it without help is one that shows no regard for the wellbeing of the people it’s designed to assist: the students.”

Brodie writes about those whose voices are excluded from civic participation by prisoner disenfranchisement.

The choice to disregard the New Zealand Bill of Rights and disallow part of our society to vote lies in the hands of the powerful and privileged, who keep changing the law as it suits them. Those who are affected immediately, prisoners themselves, are largely left out of this conversation.

Dan explores the programs run by charity Sustainable Coastlines and its engagement with prisoners; projects that are part of much larger scale environmental movement needed to restore New Zealand’s natural landscape. *** Not everyone is given the same opportunities and, when it comes to spaces like the university and politics, voices are missing and unheard. How do we hear them? The first step is to listen.

— Tuioleloto Laura Toailoa and Tim Manktelow

9

News

NEWS EUROPEAN STUDENTS ASSOCIATION RE-EMERGES AUSTRALIAN SEXUAL ASSAULT REPORT RELEASED PNG ELECTION PART II SAVE THE PENGUINS PEOPLE DYING FROM SYNTHETIC CANNABIS

POLITICS POLITICAL ROUND-UP THE PARTY LINE

10

EUROPEAN STUDENTS ASSOCIATION RE-EMERGES

the comments made by AUESA. “Although [the] post came from a place of negativity, an astounding number of comments came from people who have an understanding CW: Racism The Auckland University European and respect for equity,” she reflected.

Salient spoke with another Students Association (AUESA) has reemerged after a period of student, who chose to remain anonyinactivity, claiming that University mous, about the group. “I followed of Auckland (UoA) schemes to pro- the page when they started, and mote Māori and Pasifika enrolment initially they were promoting aspects of European culture. [...] However, are “racist.”

AUESA first formed in Janu- in recent weeks, the rhetoric degenary 2017, and received extensive erated to blatant racism. [...] There media attention for holding views is an aspect of this group that may that promoted white supremacy and just want to feel some pride in their heritage, without the guilt of coloninationalism.

On August 1, a Facebook post sation. However, I suspect some see published by AUESA condemned it as an outlet for their racist views.”

Aucklander Eddie Light told the UoA Māori and Pasifika AdmisSalient that he supported AUESA’s sion Scheme (MAPAS), which facilitates Māori and Pasifika student rhetoric.

“People are sick and tired of the enrolment in the Faculty of Medical racism from radical Māoris. There and Health Sciences.

AUESA posted: “These brave are hundreds of Māori groups.

ANZAC heroes did not go to war We even had Māori law firms caterso that their grandchildren and great ing for Māori. Māori schools. Māori grandchildren could be treated like farmer of the year awards. [...] For second class citizens. While these God’s sake we even have a Māori brave ANZAC/Kiwi soldiers were Party, and yet one lousy European fighting, there were scarcely any group starts up and the Māori go off Pacific Islanders in NZ [...] yet their nut screaming racist? [...] The today any Polynesian immigrant that whole attack on the European Assogains permanent residence can qual- ciation is racist. It’s that simple. We ify for the MAPAS scheme and be can have Māori groups of all sorts, admitted as a quota student. This is yet we can’t have a European one? an absolute disgrace to our ANZAC Blatant racism.”

Auckland University Students soldiers.”

Association (AUSA) President Will The MAPAS scheme, in the vein of affirmative action, seeks to allevi- Matthews said their policy is no ate some of the systemic inequalities comment with regard to AUESA, faced by Māori and Pasifika commu- though noted “they are not affiliated to AUSA or the university.” nities in New Zealand.

Following the August 1 FaceIn 2015, only 58% of Pasifika book post’s removal, AUESA issued students in Year 13 gained their Level 3 NCEA, and only 30% gained a statement saying that the group University Entrance. Furthermore, had deleted the posts “as they were the Pasifika community has the low- not particularly relevant to [their] est median income in New Zealand, organisational objectives.”

“If they were not relevant, why at $23,686 per year. 49% of Pasifika post them?” Sarah reflected. people earn below $20,000 per year.

“If anything, the offensive Salient spoke with Sarah, a Pasifika student at Auckland University,about post showed that [AUESA] were

News NEWS outnumbered within the viral community. [...] Step outside of your mind-set that Māori and Pasifika are privileged and take a look at how our communities are living and then start to have these conversations.”

— Henry Badenhorst Juer

AUSTRALIAN SEXUAL ASSAULT REPORT RELEASED Following requests from 39 Australian universities, the Australian Human Rights Commission released a report on sexual assault and sexual harassment in universities on August 1.

The report analysed information regarding students who had experienced sexual assault and/or harassment while at university or when travelling to or from university. It found that, out of the 39,000 students interviewed, one in five had been sexually harassed at or when travelling to or from campus. 1.6% of students reported being sexually assaulted in a university setting.

Commissioner Kate Jenkins wrote that in order to prevent the extreme prevalence of sexual assault and harassment in universities, universities needed to be more active in terms of prevention, through “building a culture of respect and [responding] appropriately by supporting victims of abuse and sanctioning perpetrators.”

Following the report’s release, a group of New Zealand students and academics made a series of OIA requests regarding specific data on the rate of sexual assault within universities over the last decade.

The request was made to all public tertiary institutions in New Zealand, with most universities and polytechnics — including VUW — acknowledging the request.

Student Luca Elder told Salient that the requests hoped to “highlight

11

News

the inadequacies of universities and how much they will do to cover up or even not collect data [on sexual assault and harassment incidents].”

VUW academic, Samantha Keene, investigated sexual violence in halls of residence in her thesis “Risky Residences”. She concluded that “current responses to sexual violence are in many ways reactive rather than proactive, and need to be comprehensively developed to respond to the unique challenges provided within the university environment.”

Pam Thorburn, Director of Student Academic Services at VUW, told Salient that the university has recognised that “it is imperative that sexual violence is talked about because it is only through discussion and awareness that we can develop a culture of respect that condemns sexual violence.”

— Samantha Gordon

PNG ELECTION PART II The Papua New Guinea general election that took place between June 24 and July 8 has been characterised internationally as suffering from mismanagement and inconsistencies.

Transparency International PNG (TIPNG) has condemned the conduct of the election as “disheartening and completely unacceptable to the vast majority of our people who believe in good and fair actions, transparency and democratic processes.”

Peter O’Neill has retained his position as Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister, winning the vote of his peers 60–46 at Parliament’s first sitting on August 2.

Parliament’s first sitting was initially delayed after two men claimed to be Member-elect for the Gumine Open electorate in Chimbu Province. Lucas Dekena and Nick Kuman both claimed they were de-

clared winner by a Returning Officer, the second case of double declaration in the 2017 election.

The Chief Justice was prevented from swearing in a Member-elect until a resolution could be found.

The Electoral Commissioner Palatis Gamato identified Kuman the winner. Gatamo stated that Returning Officer Max Yomba had “wrongly and illegally” declared Dekena as Member-elect.

The Commonwealth Observer Group, chaired by former New Zealand Governor-General Anand Satyanand, sent teams to 12 PNG provinces to monitor polling. Satyanand explained to RNZ that the teams were to observe independently but were “not to be responsible for the conduct of the election.”

In his report, Satyanand identified that “a key issue to this election has been the significant number of voters whose names were not on the common roll.”

Gamato admitted that thousands of citizens were disenfranchised and ineligible to vote, explaining to RNZ that the entirety of 2016 “was committed to doing work on the roll.”

“Unfortunately the funding for the roll updating was not done on a timely basis for us at the Electoral Commission to work on the roll.”

All three members of the Electoral Advisory Commission resigned in early July, saying the Electoral Commission refused to provide them with the basic information necessary to perform their “constitutional duties and roles.”

— Matt Currill

SAVE THE PENGUINS An Official Information Act request to the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) has revealed widespread underreporting of penguin deaths in New Zealand.

MPI’s response to the OIA request, which was lodged by Forest and Bird, reported that between October 2015–October 2016, 14 penguin deaths have been caused by set-net commercial fishing. Of these deaths, 13 were reported by MPI observers, who are appointed by MPI to collect information on board commercial fishing vessels, and one was reported by an individual.

Forest and Bird challenged these findings on the basis that “only 3% of the set-net fishers have MPI observers on board.” Megan Hubscher, a spokesperson for Forest and Bird, told Salient they find it “extremely implausible” that more than 90% of the penguin deaths caused by set-net fishing are attributable to 3% of the fishing industry.

It is likely that penguin deaths are being severely underreported, despite a legal obligation for fishers using setnets to report the by-kill of penguins in New Zealand.

MPI reflected that they were aware “that it’s likely that there are more captures than is directly reported.”

Following the OIA response, MPI have made a commitment to collaborating with Forest and Bird and the fishing industry on the issue.

MPI intend to increase its observer monitoring of set-net fishing, focusing their efforts on the protection of native species such as the Hoiho yellow-eyed penguin.

Hubscher was concerned that a lack of action around penguin deaths “could lead to species like Hoiho to become extinct.”

Currently, less than 1% of New Zealand’s oceans are fully protected from commercial fishing, highlighting the need for improved regulation around commercial set-net by-kills.

“We could be the last generation to co-exist with some of these penguins,” Hubscher said.

— Tharisheka Mohan

12

News

PEOPLE DYING FROM SYNTHETIC CANNABIS Synthetic cannabis, which was legal in New Zealand until May 2014, is believed to have contributed to the deaths of ten New Zealanders last month.

Acting Detective Inspector Peter Florence told Stuff on July 28 that synthetic cannabis has always been prevalent, but there had been a sudden unexplained spike in recent months.

He said the police were doing everything they could to get synthetic cannabis off the streets, and urged the public to assist by reporting those suspected to be dealing the substance.

Ambulance service provider St John has also seen an increase in patients affected by the drug.

On July 20, ambulances responded to 23 synthetic cannabis incidents — an all time high.

“Patients under the influence of this drug are exhibiting grossly disturbed behaviour, often suffering seizures and cardiac arrest,” St John Medical Director Tony Smith, told Stuff.

The Ministry of Health rated synthetic cannabis as the fourth most harmful drug in New Zealand in 2016. It is generally unknown what chemicals synthetic cannabis contains, as it is innocuous plant material with chemicals sprayed onto it.

Chief Coroner Judge Deborah Marshall released a statement on August 1 saying agencies are working hard to identify the drug’s active chemicals.

Avondale Police Inspector Marcia Murray said that “the chemicals used [in manufacturing the drug] are readily accessible to the public.”

Despite the recent deaths, Murray believes there can be a misconception that synthetic cannabis is a “safe” drug because it was once legal.

— Harry Clatworthy

* WATCH THIS SPACE *

MORE HARD HITTING NEWS TO COME NEXT WEEK

OPINION OPINION OPINION OPINION OPINION

OPINION

— EAT

OPINION

disclosures in disgust. The talkback community at large — magnified, angry, and shouting. Stuff comments personified.

A vox pop of bile masquerading as fairness, suffocating any meaningful discussion that would include those on the margins.

“The law is the law” they told us, again and again. As if the law exists as the purest of art forms, devoid of all circumstance and context. The law was the vehicle that stole Māori land. The law disenfranchised and othered sectors of society as punishment.

The law enables those who will never need to rely on WINZ to receive the student allowance through clever accountancy.

The New Zealand Herald wrote a piece justifying this outrage by concluding that Bill English intentionally claiming a housing allowance not designed for him, in contrast to Turei’s “benefit fraud”, was “technically legal.” Duncan Garner demanded Turei’s resignation to “stop the rot.” Alienating, tiresome, tedious.

This outrage also ensured that in condemning and stifling the action of one, it stamped out the attention of many.

The message to anyone on the periphery is brutally clear — stay there.

OPINION OPINION

There’s something inherently lonely about politics. For so many New Zealanders, talking about tax or climate change is inaccessible.

Representative democracy seems foreign.

Even as a fifth year, nearly-universityeducated, Pākehā law student, I often feel like I’m on the periphery of understanding and inclusion. It’s tiresome and tedious.

I’ve been thinking about this place on the periphery, which I feel part of at times.

Soundbites chanted by politicians can be confusing. The Opportunities Party’s Deputy Leader, Geoff Simmons, talks about being a “radical centrist”; Bill English keeps talking about “social investment”; Jacinda Ardern is remaining “relentlessly positive.” Everyone seems to be talking without actually saying anything.

When Metiria Turei first presented the Green Party’s “families package” on July 16, she considered herself to be “one of those women, who you hear people complain about on talkback radio.” One who was residing on the periphery of a system who made her feel she had no choice but to lie.

The personality of the announcement ignited something on the margins of Aotearoa for voices not usually welcomed in the discussion. An arm reached out to the people left behind by politics. Suddenly, we were there with Metiria and her thenbaby daughter. And Metiria was there with us. She embodied a politics of love and the promise of a community.

The people of Manurewa, the electorate with the largest proportion of beneficiaries, told Mihingarangi Forbes that Turei “is an inspiration for women, an inspiration for Māori.”

Yet, in response, a good chunk of the New Zealand community reacted to Turei’s

OPINION

OPINION

“godDAMN this stupid milkloving piece of shit dumbass mean spirited sale at briscoes racist sexist 40% off deck furniture piss country” — Hera Lindsay Bird

OPINION

Opinion

13

14 14

POLITICS POLITICAL ROUND-UP Labour Leadership

Andrew Little resigned as Labour leader on August 1 after poll results published in July showed that support for his party had fallen, and that he had lower “preferred Prime Minister” ratings than his deputy, Mount Albert MP Jacinda Ardern.

At a caucus meeting the same day, Little nominated Ardern to become the next leader, who was voted in unanimously by her colleagues.

Grant Robertson, who had lost a leadership bid to Little in 2014, nominated Te Tai Tokerau MP Kelvin Davis as deputy leader — the first Māori MP to hold that position in the party’s history.

Ardern held a press conference later that day where she said that the policies Labour had campaigned on thus far would remain largely unchanged, but that the tone of Labour’s campaign would now involve “relentless positivity.” With the General Election looming, Ardern said her party would run “the campaign of our lives.”

In what political scientist Bryce Edwards has called “Jacindamania”, Ardern’s ascent to the leadership was greeted enthusiastically by Labour supporters. Just a day after she became leader, Labour received new donations totalling $250,000 and the support of around 1000 new volunteers. The party’s General Secretary Andrew Kirton said he had “never seen anything remotely like this.”

Hoping to gain the support of young voters, Ardern described herself as “youth adjacent”. She is one of two millennial party leaders, the other being ACT’s David Seymour.

Ardern remains committed to Labour’s “Working Futures” policy introduced last year, which offers three years of tertiary education free — a policy which may help the party gain a greater share of the youth vote this

election. Labour MP Trevor Mallard said Ardern has “got the advantage of youth and vibe and an ability to connect.”

However, Ardern’s detractors pointed out that the leadership change was little more than window-dressing, and that Labour would have to change its policy platform rather than just refresh its leadership if it wants to govern. National’s campaign manager Steven Joyce said in an interview on August 3 that “the bigger problem for Labour is it’s the same Labour Party.”

National chose not to attack Ardern’s own credibility after she became Leader. Steven Joyce said that Ardern was “as capable as any of the other leaders we’ve been up against.”

Joyce preferred to undermine Labour’s reliability instead, saying that “there’s a possibility that people just aren’t keen on the [party’s] message.”

The Opportunities Party leader Gareth Morgan described Ardern as “a breath of fresh air” and hopes that Labour can now “make a contest of this election.” Morgan offered all of his party’s policies to Ardern on August 3, stating that Labour has “historically been the most innovative of the major parties by far” and that ultimately he is unconcerned about who implements their policies, only that they do.

Māori Party President Tukoroirangi Morgan told the press on August 4 that Māori “want our party to work with Labour if it’s in a position to form a government after September 23.” Morgan said that Andrew Little had “closed the door” on the chance of working with the Māori Party. In an interview earlier this year, Little had said that Māori interests are not best served by the Māori Party because National “doesn’t listen to them on anything of it doesn’t wish to.”

Current polling suggests that Labour will need the support of both the Greens and NZ First to govern after the election. NZ First Leader Winston Peters has said that a referendum on abolishing the Māori electorates would be a “bottom line” for his support for a Labour-led government. It is unlikely that the Māori Party will support such a coalition given that its Leader, Te Ururoa Flavell, is the MP for the Māori electorate of Waiariki.

The “Jacinda Effect” helped Labour rise by nine points to 33.1% in a Reid Research poll published on August 9 — the highest poll result since 2014. The poll boosted Labour’s confidence after months of difficulties. Ardern said the result was “heartening [...] but we’re not going to be resting on our laurels from this.”

Now facing a charismatic opponent who is garnering attention from both the public and party leaders, National will stress its economic policy if it is to regain the attention of the voting public. Prime Minister Bill English said on August 2 that “it’s going to be the contest of ideas more than personalities which matter [...] we will be working hard to win that battle of ideas.”

— Aidan Kelly

15

Politics

THE PARTY LINE

On March 5, Children’s Commissioner Andrew Becroft suggested that New Zealand should consider lowering the voting age to 16. The idea is not without precedent — it was raised by former MP Sue Bradford in 2007 and 2011; and, internationally, countries including Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Scotland have a voting age of 16. Proponents argue that those under 18 are disenfranchised and lowering the voting age could increase turnout and engagement. Opponents disagree, and 17-year old Steve Walton, who wrote an opinion piece for Stuff in March, said “giving teenagers the vote would only lead to biased, naive, and uninformed decisions about issues we don’t understand.” Should the voting age be lowered to 16?

Greens at Vic Absolutely. 16-year olds can get married, have children, and be taxed.

They offer a unique and valuable voice and if we want to take youth participation seriously, allowing their voices in places of power is an essential part of that.

We would be following Scotland, Austria, Brazil, and others — all of whom have experienced a clear increase in voter turnout. 16year olds are more often than not in a stable environment with access to civics education and parental support, increasing their likelihood of voting. Allowing 16-year olds to vote does not have any outrageous effect on electoral results, but does encourage a continued life participation in politics.

Voter turnout has been rapidly declining for 30 years, leading to politics clearly unfavourable and inaccessible to our most vulnerable.

A strong political shift is necessary to boost voter participation and improve the representativeness of our electoral system.

— Kayden Briskie

Young Nats — Lower North Island The Young Nats have not taken an official stance on lowering the voting age nor actively discussed the issue as an organisation. However, we can assume limited support for lowering the age from all members, including those currently under 18.

In 1974, the Young Nats supported 18 being implemented as the voting age when this issue was considered before Parliament and subsequently legislated, and see no reason to shift from this stance.

As there is currently little evidence to suggest benefits to New Zealand lowering the voting age to 16, the Young Nats would consider 18 to be a fitting age for universal suffrage. The Young Nats, as an organisation, believe engaging young people in the democratic process is important, and emphasise that there are ways outside of voting for those under 18 to get involved and make their voices heard.

— Sam Stead, LNI Young Nats Chair

Vic Labour VicLabour is pushing for the voting age to be reduced to 16, along with the need to provide good civics education.

The argument that 16 and 17year olds wouldn’t understand the issues in front of them is flawed when we see 16-year olds presenting petitions to parliament and making informed arguments on issues they understand; to say nothing of the fact that a 30-year old doesn’t have to pass the same comprehension test to get their ballot paper.

If given the vote, 16 and 17-year olds would make more informed decisions than many of the older generations. Young voters often bring different perspectives, but that doesn’t make them any less valid.

They face larger student loans than current tertiary students, and are more likely to be concerned about the impacts of climate change.

Give them a voice, they will make it heard.

16

• INTERVIEW WITH GEOFF SIMMONS •

Geoff Simmons is an economist at the Morgan Foundation, the Deputy Leader of the Opportunities Party, and a candidate in the Wellington Central electorate. According to the Opportunities Party website he enjoys playing in a samba band, something we didn’t ask him about, but we did talk about his background, radical centrism, housing, and transport. The transcript below has been shortened considerably, the full version can be found on our website — http://salient. org.nz/category/interview/.

A recording of this interview will be broadcast on Salient FM.

where we want everyone to have a fair go, but beyond that it’s up to you and your hard work to get ahead. And those two different ideas are epitomised by Labour and National as their values. In our major parties you can see those two values and we agree with both of them.

*** In an interview, this was during the campaign for the Mt Albert by-election, with Jenée Tibshraeny for interest. co.nz you described the approach of the Opportunities Party as “radical centrism.”

Could you unpack that concept?

No. Any scientist worth their salt (and good economists should as well — economics is a social science) will say what they are trying to achieve before they tell you the evidence.

You have to have a pretty clear idea of what you’re trying to achieve, and then it’s a question of, what’s the best way to get to that outcome. In determining what you’re trying to achieve, obviously there are values wrapped up within that.

You can’t have an evidence base without values.

There are two parts to coming up with policy — there are your values and there is how you achieve those values. In our view, the values of the Opportunities Party are very middle New Zealand — centrist. In that we want equality of opportunity, not equality of outcomes. We want everyone to have a fair go to be able to achieve their potential. New Zealanders have this thing

The radical bit is what it would actually take to achieve those values, and, when you look around the world, a lot of the things we’re suggesting are not that radical. They’re radical for New Zealand, given the policy malaise we’ve been stuck in for the 33 years since Rogernomics. But looking around the world a lot of the things we’re talking about are just best practice from other countries. We’re radical for New Zealand and we’re centrist in our values.

A term that is thrown around a lot, by people describing the party, and members of your party as well, is that your policy is “evidence-based.” Something I’ve wondered, is do you consider evidence to be ideologically determined? Can you separate it from values and view it in vacuum, say?

So your key value would be equality of opportunity?

You can think of it as fair go and prosperity. So equality of opportunity kind of brings those two things together. Give everyone a good start in life and then let them succeed to the best of their abilities.

The Opportunities Party has been self-labelled as antiestablishment by Gareth Morgan. In a previous interview we had with him, he suggested that “the main thing with establishment parties [in this category he included National, Labour, NZ First, and the Greens to an extent] is that they are filled with career politicians. So the priority for those people is keeping their job. So that drives them to (it’s how trustees act actually) do as little as possible because we don’t want to disturb

17

Interview

the voters.” Say the Opportunities Party did gain 5% of the vote, or did win an electorate, and entered parliament, would you be sticking around as a candidate for the election in 2020?

Reset” is trying to get government (with a small g, not National or Labour, as those politicians are never Our kaupapa is that once our policies are implemented going to look long term) there’s no need for us anymore. Realistically, we’re not going institutions right. If you to get even a fraction of what we are proposing implemented make sure there are people in one term of government — there will still be a need for within government that are the Opportunities Party in 2020. thinking long term, whether that’s an upper house, or a Gareth is trying to make something that can continue on; parliamentary commission, he doesn’t want to be involved forever. After this election whatever. Some of the we have to create a constitution, work out how we involve things we see overseas, our members in developing policies, work out how to some of these institutions, select candidates, work out how to select a leader — all have built into the system that cool stuff. That’s going to take the time between now people thinking long-term, and 2020 to develop; we didn’t have time to do that before saying, hey, have you noticed this election. So there are a whole lot of caveats there as to this iceberg we’re heading whether I’d even be welcome to be involved in the party, you straight toward? I think can’t choose these things. I’m passionate about policy, I’m that if you can build on the passionate about making a difference to New Zealand, and institutional frameworks if I can help then I will. If I end up a bit like Andrew Little to do that then perhaps we where I’m hindering more than helping, I’ll gladly step don’t need a political party. aside.

In a hypothetical world, say all of the Opportunities Party’s policies were implemented — the country would still have to be governed if we continue to have a parliamentary democracy.

Would the Opportunities Party take on the role of governance?

Plus there are always new issues that will require policy provisions.

In the previously mentioned interview with Jenée Tibshraeny for interest.co.nz, you also said we’re in a “new phase, where left and right are disappearing, and politics all around the world is changing.”

I think there is always a role for a cutting edge party, and I Given the recent UK election think that’s why Gareth said the Greens to a certain extent, where you had a different kind because between 10–20 years ago that’s the role they were of left-wing Labour emerge, I playing. Whereas in more recent years they’ve been playing wondered if that goes against it more safe, as they became a bigger, more mainstream what you’re saying about the party. I think there is always that role within a parliamentary disappearance of left and right? system; whether or not we’re the best to play that role is a big question.

I’ve got a lot of friends in the UK, I lived there for a few The establishment parties are very good at dealing with and years. A lot of my friends managing things on a day to day basis, but they’re terrible think that Jeremy Corbyn is at looking long term and seeing what issues are coming “batshit crazy” but voted for and adapting for them. Our fourth policy “Democracy Labour anyway, because they

18

disagree with the Tories so much. This is the trouble with the old Westminster first-past-the-post system, you don’t really have the opportunity to show your true preference.

You’re much better, when it’s a two horse race, to pick which of the shitty horses you’re more happy riding.

The second point I’d make is that one fact that a lot of people don’t dwell on is that not only did Jeremy Corbyn increase the Labour vote, Theresa May got the highest ever Conservative vote in recent history. What’s the driver of that? It’s polarisation — Labour moving solidly to the left motivated a lot more Conservative voters to vote than normally would. As things polarise there is a risk of extremism arising, I think we’ve seen that in the US, which I can understand because they have big problems that need solving. What we’re trying to say is, if we don’t get radical now, things are going to get extreme, and you will start to see this polarisation of society. That’s why it’s important to be more radical now to head that off at the pass, so we can keep society reasonably together.

We’ve been talking a lot about things that are away from student issues. But given we mentioned aspects of this earlier, what changes does the Opportunities Party propose to housing policy that would benefit students?

As I mentioned, we want to tax assets, and housing is included in that, which will stop the speculation we see now and will hold house prices. It won’t make housing affordable overnight, but over time it will make housing affordable.

In the meantime we have to do more to protect the rights of tenants. One thing I should point out about that tax reform [we’re proposing] is that it benefits renters.

What we’re doing is taxing assets and giving it back in cuts to income tax. 80% of people will be better off, and that includes the 50% of New Zealanders who are renters — all renters would be better off under that tax change.

In the meantime we have to take care of the rights of renters, so long-term tenancies, warranties of fitness on rental properties, greater investment in insulation and efficient heating — all of those things are part of our policy, which was released today, “Houses not Homes”, our tenancy reform. Those are the major housing things which willbenefit students.

Interview

Also important for students is transport, something you’ve been working on. In terms of Wellington Central, I wondered if you had any general thoughts about what should be done to make it fairer for students?

We do agree with the Green Party policy of a green card funded from the National Land Transport Fund. The issue with the fund at the moment is that it all goes into roads, and we think that it should be looking at projects right across public transport, and choosing the ones which have the best costbenefit analysis. If they were to do that, then free off-peak fares for students would just make sense because it’s keeping traffic off the roads.

It’s kind of impossible to promise certain projects, but if we were to run our transport in that way there would be much more invested into public transport. I personally think a green card, or offpeak fare for students, makes a lot of sense.

Just on students, our Unconditional Basic Income (UBI) is our main policy for young people. There is a third of young people who don’t go to any form of tertiary education and we want to support everyone to pursue their goals. I used

19

Interview

this example when I talked to bFM; I think some of the best journalism in New Zealand comes out of places like you guys, and we should be supporting you to do that because I know a lot of you are volunteering. That’s the idea of giving everyone $200 a week, no questions asked, it allows you set out your own goals and work out how to pursue them. I have a lot of mates out at Weta and none of them went through formal education — they just turned up and said, can I sweep the floors and copy what Barry does. There are many paths to the top of the mountain.

It’s how we always finish — what’s your favourite colour?

Green.

— Tim Manktelow

OPINION OPINION OPINION OPINION OPINION OPINION

20

Opinion

TRYING TO ADDRESS YOUR OWN MENTAL HEALTH IN NZ You’ve probably heard someone derisively compare mental health to “diseases that you can’t help having” like diabetes, or cancer.

Some people say that they’re one and the same, other people love to say that there’s no comparison to be made; one is your fault, the others aren’t. And that’s probably because only a select few will ever experience the root cause of a terminal illness (like a malfunctioning organ, or a tumour) so all the rest of us can do is observe. But everybody will experience stress, and anxiety, and sadness. So how do we discern the difference between having emotions and having a mental disorder?

Obviously if you’ve ever been diagnosed with a mental disorder you’ll know exactly what the difference is, and that experiencing life’s regular emotional spectrum feels completely separate to experiencing something misfiring in your brain. But since “feelings” are universal, it’s hard for people who are capable of dusting themselves off and “making a conscious effort to be more positive” ( Jesus, if I had a dollar) to understand that there are people who can’t; and not just because they don’t want to, or because they aren’t trying hard enough.

There’s a difference between being upset and being clinically depressed, and being worried and having an anxiety disorder, etc., and I think most of us can understand, or at least recognise that. So that’s not what this piece is about. Because something as innately human as judging from a place of prejudice rather than a place of empathy or willingness will, for most of us, take a long time to undo.

Truthfully, you won’t understand the grind that is trying to address your own mental health in New Zealand unless you’ve tried to do it. When you’ve been dealing with something on your own for a while and finally accepted that you’ll keep hitting the

same wall without some proper guidance, you assume that when you ask for help, it’ll be available. But that isn’t always the case. You might get assessed once if you really push for it, then have to explain yourself to a counsellor who doesn’t have the time to indulge you, then get sent home with a prescription for a low dosage SSRI and instructions to “let that kick in and ride it out.” It seems we’re often stumped as to how somebody could slip through the national network of counsellors and crisis teams, all the “fail safes” put in place by the DHBs to prevent us from feeling like we’re out of options. But honestly, unless you’re paying big bucks (think almost triple themGP price, minimum) for proper intensive psychiatric treatment, you’ll only ever be offered airy-fairy advice and catchall medication; at least at first.

It was such a process to find a doctor who took me seriously, and even knew how to treat me at all. More often than not I’d leave a session feeling like I talked, and talked, and talked, but nothing was resolved; and I had nothing left to say about it, so felt it must be unresolvable. That was never the case, and I just had to keep talking at people until I found someone who said it back to me, in the right way. But that was so time consuming and, sometimes, straight up embarrassing. I mean, you can only admit your most shameful and selfish thoughts to a stranger so many times without progress before you start to think that maybe you are just that; shameful and selfish. It’s easy to tell yourself, like I did, that maybe you’re being a massive baby, and you need to kick your ass into gear on your own. Maybe you should try harder to snap out of it. When you try and (inevitably) fail to function like a healthy person on resolve alone, you ask for help like you’re supposed to. But

Opinion

OPINION OPINION OPINION

— Caitlin Penrose

OPINION

and didn’t make me feel like I was having the biggest whinge of all time while we spoke. It took four years of “seeking help” to get that, because I was finally able to shell out the ridiculous fee for a couple of private appointments.

It’s so frustrating to feel like you have a lot to offer, but you can’t because you’re channelling all of your energy into something that’s proving to be completely futile and disappointing. And it shouldn’t be so hard to get something as simple as a name for what you’ve been experiencing, and some diagnosis-specific tips on how best to move forward. It only took two appointments with the right person (two, after years of attempting therapy and medication) to get myself back on track.

There has got to be more resources, more “high-end” mental treatment readily available to those who rely on the public system, and less hurdles set up in front of people who are just trying to help themselves.

Sometimes you want to sort yourself out, and it seems like there’s no practical way to do that without completely burdening everyone around you. But there is. It might take time, time you probably feel like you don’t have to “waste” on something as “pointless and self-indulgent as your own mental health” (at least I know I did at 4.32am on April 5, apparently) but it is important, and it is worth it. The more time you spend working on a realistic treatment plan now, the sooner you’ll be back to living and contributing to the extent that you know healthy-you is capable of. And that’s what matters.

OPINION

when that’s just as fruitless as it was the last time, the cycle continues.

When you’ve got to get help, you’ve got to get help. And collectively we have to push for real, practical help for everyone.

I understand that medicine and psychiatry are professions, and you have to pay professionals for their expertise, but there has got to be a better system in place for the people who have neither the time nor the funds to properly invest in their mental health. A system in which trying to handle yourself in a practical, preventative way is embraced, rather than overlooked; you shouldn’t have to make a big, discernibly “crazy” scene in order to be taken seriously and treated in good time, or even treated at all. That’s how people (especially young people) get the wrong idea about “reaching out” for help. And with New Zealand currently holding the title for highest teen suicide rate in the developed world, we really can’t afford for our mental health system to be anything other than efficient, and easy for vulnerable individuals to navigate.

It’s reasonable to expect a wait in the public system, and while it would be ideal, nobody goes into their first consultation expecting to leave with a perfectly tailored treatment plan (this is in no way a dig at public hospital staff — they’re overworked and underpaid, and they do usually try in good faith to give you as much as they can in what little time they have to spare). But to spend years bouncing from referral to referral, investing time, energy, and money into a service that offers no real structure or end goal, and completely alienating your friends and family in the process, isn’t fair to expect of anyone. I can attest to the relief of being given an actual diagnosis by a psychiatrist who knew exactly what was clinically wrong with me almost immediately,

OPINION

21

Columns COLUMNS

22

VUWSA Remember Fairer Fares? People have been approaching us lately asking, “what happened with that?” Admittedly after months, years even, of campaigning to get over 1700 submissions in support of Fairer Fares to the regional council in May this year, things have been a bit quiet.

That’s because we were waiting for the Greater Wellington Regional Council to process all of the submissions and to release their subsequent draft long term plan.

But this draft long term plan has finally been released and we have some massive news — a 25% off Snapper fare for all tertiary students in Wellington is included in the draft plan! This is the first time the council has included any kind of tertiary discount in fare review plans and it’s a massive win for us.

This success is thanks to the hard mahi of years of VUWSA executives, leaders from Ngāi Tauira and the Pasifika Students’ Council, student volunteers, and all the other supporters within the university and wider community. Together, we have shown what students can achieve when they come together. If we manage to get this change passed, it will be one of VUWSA’s biggest successes in making life more affordable for all Wellington students.

So where to from here? On August 14, the draft plan will go out for consultation, and we will send a clear message that the 25% discount for tertiary students needs to remain in the plan.

Keep an eye out for how you can get involved in this over the coming days.

Although the most important commitment is to the fare discount itself, the devil is in the detail. Much of this detail is yet to be worked out, but it will have a big impact on how good the discount actually ends up being for you. It includes things such as whether only full time students will qualify, whether there is a different coloured Snapper or “tertiary” Snapper card, and what you actually have to do to get the card.

Students in Auckland find their system pretty difficult and cumbersome, and it’s essential that

we, and the council, take this opportunity to think about how to make any new discount fare easy to access for all students, for example, looking at whether we can have a student fare Snapper card built into the student IDs we get when we enrol. There are also issues to think about past the introduction of a bus student fare in terms of creating equal access for students on other public transport, like a Snapper card system on trains. Until that happens, the student fare won’t be available for train users, so the more pressure we put on the council to get this stuff to happen, and soon, the better.

Finally, it is important to note that the proposed transport changes do not include wins for everyone. There are a few groups who are not set to benefit from the changes, including our much valued bus drivers, who are facing significant threats to their jobs and pay. VUWSA 100% stands behind our bus drivers and publicly supports their campaign for fairer treatment, which you can get behind here: http://www. together.org.nz/thankyou-driver.

On the topic of campaigns and young people’s power to create change, VUWSA is excited to be a part of the We Have Power campaign to get 100% of students in Aotearoa voting this election. We will be working with more than 15 other students’ associations and student groups around Aotearoa to mobilise hundreds of volunteers to make this goal happen and to put student issues on the political agenda this election. Check out www. wehavepower.org.nz!

In service, — Your Campaigns Officer and President, Raven and Rory

Columns

23

TE ARA TAUIRA

ONE OCEAN

The word “taonga” as used in Te Tiriti has been on my mind a lot lately, as Matariki rises and has brought us a new year. Obviously the concept of “taonga” is much more than ownership of physical properties. As this new year awakens, I mihi to our whenua, our reo, and kaumātua, our mātauranga, and all else we hold as taonga If we are to take Te Tiriti at its word, it is not only this country’s duty to look after Māori land and Māori resources. Our duty is also to look after our culture, our language, and our people. It is imperative that we protect our taonga, if we are to reach any sense of stability in our national identity in Aotearoa.

Protecting our taonga is so much more complex than just giving back ownership rights to the land we have been connected to always as Māori. “Protect our taonga” means encouraging te reo Māori to be taught in all schools. “Protect our taonga” means encouraging Māori voices in society, and allowing whakaaro Māori to flourish — decolonising our mindsets. “Protect our taonga” means connecting not just to modern medicine, but to the established ways of rongoa.

It means making sure we are working hard to clean waterways and look after the native creatures of this land, over whom we are kaitiaki.

As the whetū rotate through the skies, they herald in tohu, and times of mahi and wānanga.

For myself, I am using this fresh start as an opportunity to understand my whakapapa better, and learn about our history as a nation.

To connect with rongoa and listen to our koroua and kuia. To realise for myself how our people’s taonga are manifested within my own life, and where I can foster new connections. This is a time to realign what kaupapa we as tauira are a part of, and the place of our taonga, behind us, and in front.

YouTube comments sections are a lot of fun.

Some people get so extra about the most trivial things, and there’s always that account that you just know is trolling. Which is cool… …until it’s your cultural practices and indigenous art forms that are being degraded.

That’s how I felt last week when I was watching videos of traditional Melanesian dance routines. I grew up in Polynesia, and therefore my knowledge has, until now, not included a lot of the amazing, vibrant, creative art forms of my mother’s side of the Pacific. There I was, trying to learn, when comments like “cover up!” and “put some on, gals!” appeared. For those of us who might not be too familiar with Melanesian rituals: a myriad of them do not require women to cover their breasts. This is simply because, unlike in the West, women’s chests were not seen as “sexual” in much of the Pacific for several hundred years. These comments came from people who still think it right to ethnocentrically superimpose their “Western”, “educated”, “civilised” blah, blah, blah ways on dances, chants, legends, paintings, and ceremonies that have deep spiritual, familial, and historical roots.

Reading comments about “these women” made me feel like my culture wasn’t mine anymore.

I could no longer define it or choose what it was (and wasn’t) about.

But our Oceania, Pasifika, whatever you want to call our region, belongs to us. The social and cultural narratives that it abounds with are our stories, about our lives. Our traditional tattoos are about us. Our costumes are about us.

Our languages are about us. Even our freakin YouTube channels are about us!

Our lives are about us. It’s time we started reclaiming them.

— Tamatha Paul

— Jasmine Koria

24

Columns

SNAPCHAT IS A GIRL’S BEST FRIEND AND OTHER SHIT CHAT I was iffy about sexting, and about sending, er, provocative Snapchats for a long time, because there’s this stigma around it, right? Only sluts/ hos/thots send filthy exchanges and nudie snaps over the internet! And to people they hardly know nonetheless!! Well, smack my ass and call me a thot. Wouldn’t be the first time this week someone insinuated that my sexual history was a direct reflection of my self-worth.

You’ll have a Google and cop a peek when some celeb’s nudes are leaked, won’t you, but me freely sending pictures of myself is the reason for the moral decline of modern society. It is possible that John Berger said it better:

You painted a naked woman because you enjoyed looking at her, put a mirror in her hand and you called the painting “Vanity,” thus morally condemning the woman whose nakedness you had depicted for you own pleasure.

Sexts are poetry, and nudes are art.

I mean, sometimes it’s really really bad poetry (“well you’ve got my blood pumping to places it hasn’t in awhile!”), but oh, when it’s good?

Someone that can construct a seductive sentence is infinitely hotter than one who asks you if you’re ready to “taste the cucumber.”

The Sext™, you might say, is a natural evolution of the love letter.

Winston Churchill wrote to Clementine: “your dear heart throbs often in my own,” and you’re telling me the use of the word “throb” was entirely innocent? Here’s the trans-historical scoop: communication is hot. Except if you’re this guy.* This guy would be way hotter if he just never spoke: Being A Boss at Life New York City College of Technology 27 kilometeres away This app fuels the female egotistical and narcissistic nature by giving them the selfie culture and a buffet of cocks to choose from. This in turn transforms most of these girls into picky bitches with shitty attitudes. Most of you females on here have nothing to offer but your depreciating looks and used up vaginas.

And yeah sometimes it’s really really bad art (I have literally never wanted to be sent a picture of you touching yourself wearing nothing but a snapback), but knowing your angles is a skill and girls deserve way more credit for the costume and lighting and composition involved in their intimate snaps.

Bonus points: considering the rumours that Snapchat stores and owns every picture sent using the app, when the Cloud starts raining my intimates on the interwebs (I have no idea how the Cloud works) there’s at least comfort in knowing I nailed my angles.

Bodies are beautiful! Sometimes I even think mine might be!!

Snapchat allows the author a certain degree of control over the viewer’s

perception. The ability to send nudes that disappear momentarily (work that slow burn girl and the minute he screenshots without your consent, block him) is redefining the boundaries of the modern “dating” scene simply by upping the anti on The Sext™.

Don’t tell me that couples back in the day, had they the ability, wouldn’t have sent each other at least softcore candids on the regular.

All I’m trying to say is, thank you to teenage Sash for reading a lot of (mainly Glee) erotic fanfiction and thank you to Snapchat for helping to borderline catfish men into thinking I’m worth their time.

Love u, XOXO — Sasha Beattie *I didn’t have the pleasure of chancing upon this fella myself but Veeta Orinko (@grossgal92) did and, get this, after they matched, his opener was a joke about unemployed people HA HA what a catch wow wow you are right we are truly spoiled for choice.

25

Columns

FROM WITHIN

— Joe Morris

THE FALLOUT ZONE

If you read stuff you’ll know all Kiwis come to London for it’s “proximity to Europe” and “because all my friends were already over here, anyway.”

Sooner or later, these reasons for leaving NZ become your means of surviving the Big Bad City, i.e. I live with old friends from Wellington, and I’m on Skyscanner daily. The continent is one argument-aboutcabin-luggage and a few bob away; as such, the rest of the UK is easily forgotten for the riviera’s promised sunshine. Last weekend I tried a different form of survival, going “bush”, or rather, forgoing any semblance of bush on the Welsh coast, going “into the hills.”

You don’t have to leave the UK to get out of London, and UK “proper” — its rural midlands and sidelands — can provide a quick cure to the homesick blues. Before getting far out of London, travelling along the M1, the highway signs point to the original Wellington, Woburn, Kelburn, and Stratford; I’m reminded of home. Take a left and cross the Welsh border and any thought of a fallout zone vanishes. The landscape skips over to New Zealand classic within a few miles — a mash up of Westcoast rainforest and Horowhenua hills. Ignore the castles. The stone walls keeping you on the side of steep valleys are laced with ferns which may as well be silver — just don’t turn them over.

This trip into Wales was to climb Mount Snowdon and some of the surrounding mountains (hills). The plan of getting to the top of Snowdon was quickly abandoned after a “short-cut” resulted, as expected, in getting lost; plus the sight of numerous tourists walking the main track. Instead, walking a ridgeline between the Irish sea and England, we saw all of three other people over three days — the least amount of people I’ve seen all year. Isolation feels very refreshing against the anonymity you experience among the throngs of people in London.

A lot of the time, London is antithetical to anything New Zealand, whereas the UK’s small towns, embroiled in agriculture and industry, feel homely. Despite being from the great metropolis of Wellington, tractors and small high streets remind me of New Zealand more than the city.

We were the UK’s farm for a century. Go figure.

The teenager at the fish and chip shop, bumbling through our order, would have been at home in Bulls: “Do you have any calamari?”

“Let me check… we usually do… sometimes,” lifting the freezer lid, “no sorry we don’t have any calamari.”

“Okay, that’s fine, could I get a piece of cod?”

“No sorry, only haddock.”

And Heinz is no Watties, though, call me crazy, I love vinegar and mushy peas.

26

Columns

THE QUEER AGENDA

ACCESS DENIED

Sanctuary, meaning: “refuge or safety from pursuit, persecution, or other danger.”

That’s what I think of when I hear the words “safe space”. Something we've talked about at UniQ before is that for a lot of queer students at Vic, the only place they feel they can be themselves is in a “safe space” like UniQ. Contrary to popular belief, the reason safe spaces like UniQ exist for queer people is because the world outside those four walls is not safe for us (the “four walls” being SU218, a room we have to book with the University before using).

Recently I talked to someone from OUT at AUT in Auckland. She told me how straight and cisgender students at AUT were complaining that they weren't allowed to go to the club’s meetings. This is something I've not been able to stop thinking about.

The reason we need these spaces for ourselves is because we simply have nowhere else to go where we can actually be ourselves.

Some people in 2017 would argue against this, but it is simply not the reality.

Safe spaces for queer people aren’t just groups like UniQ. They’re gender neutral bathrooms, lecturers who ask for pronouns, strangers who don’t assume your gender or sexuality.

We have parking spaces and bathrooms which are dedicated to disabled people. Spaces only they should be able to take up. Spaces that able bodied people insist on invading. I’ve been at many events and tried to make the bathrooms gender neutral and time after time I’ve been told to “take over” the disabled bathrooms. Pushing one minority group into another's safe space.

Disabled people, women, Māori and Pasifika people, and queer people all need to be able to take up space without fear of violence, judgement, or discrimination. We are demanding space that values our presence and where we won’t be ignored.

— Kate Aschoff

Hi, my name is Lilli, and I’m an Academic Support Worker for Disability Services here at Victoria.

Academic Support Worker roles include note taking, reading, writing for students during tests and exams, and making resources accessible for students. My primary roles are reading/writing and accessibility support.

As you might expect, we are very busy during the university calendar, especially around exam time. This year was my first experience of being a reader/writer/supervisor for exams. I was nervous, at first. I wanted the best for my students, and was concerned that my inexperience would interfere with their experiences. I schooled my bubbling anxiety about it and plunged headlong into a slew of exams, spanning the whole exam period.

For my first exam (and the subsequent ones) I arrived a half-hour before the designated time.

Nervously, I re-examined my guidelines, chiseling every instruction into my mind. I reassured myself: the first instance of anything is always the hardest. With my resolve hardened I relaxed somewhat. Part of being a reader/ writer is reassuring the student by being calm and collected. I smoothed down my frazzled nerves and waited.

The student arrived, and we were on our way to our exam room. Naturally, it was tucked out of the way of the main lecture theatres, and I felt the tension creeping back into my shoulders. What if I got us lost? However, the unthinkable did not come to pass, and we arrived safely to the exam room. From there, we settled in, and the time flew by; before I knew it, we had finished the exam. Relief washed over me, as the student was happy with their work. We parted ways and I returned the paper and resources to the faculty office, looking forward to the next exam with newfound confidence.

*UniQ would like to note that we are open to all students/staff who are questioning their gender/sexuality

— Lilli Street

27

Columns

POSTGRAD INFORMER My Brussels sprouts tasted like absolution.

Perfectly roasted and delicately sauced in a fig and balsamic glaze, they accompanied a lavish meal that I bought for myself with the discretionary funds I suddenly had after leaving a relationship in which I was treated like a sort of combination duvet and ATM, with a man who expressed a deep antipathy towards both Brussels sprouts and my financial independence.

We were together for a shockingly long time, thanks to my latent saviour complex and a culturally internalised fear that if I objected to his behaviour, I’d come across as shrill, a nag, a shrew, all of those words that are used specifically to belittle women for being assertive. There was a little bit of overachievement in it as well — I wanted to be the Best Girlfriend Ever, and I mistakenly believed that the growing portfolio of sacrifices and self-denials were assignments I completed on the way to being fully certified as such.

I decided to finally leave a week before I started my Master’s, and starting my thesis represented the beginning of a year of independence, realising I was much happier and much less lonely when I was technically spending much more time alone. I was warned before starting postgrad about the isolation of a thesis, but I prefer the freedom that comes with solitude, with the confidence of setting my own schedule. I’ve become a bit of a gourmet recluse, and I love it. I finally have the time and energy to do (and eat) the things I love, and to say no to the things I don’t love, without any contradictory messages of repression.

At dinner, I had brought a notebook along with me with notes for a gig I had later that night —the Brussels sprouts that I so highly complimented had been crossed off the bill when I left, and I realised that the notebook combined with the table for one and the four courses I’d ordered had created the false but very convenient impression that I was a food blogger.

— Emma Wollum

28

Features

Nā Ataria Rangipikitia Sharman

“ ”

29

Ataria Rangipikitia Sharman

To name the world

Pedagogy of the Oppressed was Paolo Freire’s creative response to the suffering of those around him. In this small book (which packs a punch) he discusses those “whose humanity has been stolen” through an unjust social order and how they may reclaim their humanity through education. Freire spent his life educating and transforming the lives of those who could not read. Central to his pedagogy was the attainment of critical literacy, or the ability to actively analyse and critique through the written word. He believed that incorporating the learner’s socio-cultural realities into the learning process led to empowerment and the challenging of social processes. He approached learning through the lens of reflection, collaboration, and the re-creation of knowledge. Despite being first published in Portuguese in 1968 (with the English translation published in 1970), Pedagogy of the Oppressed remains relevant today, in a world of rapid population growth, technological change, and increasing inequality caused by economic and climate volatility.

For Freire, the education system “functions as an instrument to facilitate the integration of the younger generation into the logic of the current system and bring about conformity to it”; or it becomes “the practise of freedom” encouraging and equipping people to creatively know and transform the practicalities of their world. In other words, one educational system teaches students to conform to the “status quo” or the world as it is now, and the other facilitates a worldview of constant critical thinking which enables the person to unpack and unveil the reality of their own circumstances. By truly and intimately knowing the realities of the world that they live in, this enables them to “better” transform the world for the future. Further, Freire argues that it is important not to confuse freedom with a continuance of the status quo, so that if the status quo is called into question through critical consciousness, it is not seen as a threat to freedom itself.

Freedom is “the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants,” and it could be argued that an education system that teaches and encourages people to know their world and act, speak, or think accordingly, is also “teaching” the practise of freedom. In 1964 Freire was jailed for 70 days after the democratically elected president of Brazil was overthrown. He reflected on this in his 1985 book The Politics of Education: “Of course, I was jailed precisely because of the political nature of education.” Freire’s methodology of teaching people to question through the acquisition of the written word in their communities was threatening, and in The Politics of Education Freire argued that “there are no neutral educators.

What we educators need to know is the type of political philosophy we subscribe to and for whose interests we work.” Perhaps the inherent political nature of education and educational institutions is an idea that, even today, we should still be discussing.

Perhaps the most profound influence on Freire’s life was his first hand experience of what it was to be dehumanised by poverty. Born in Recife, Brazil, Freire saw the effects of poverty in the community around him. In 1929, Freire’s middle class family experienced suffering first hand when their circumstances (alongside many of the middle class) deteriorated during the Great Depression.

Freire’s family could no longer afford to feed him. For Freire, the pangs of hunger created a listlessness and inability to learn, which began to affect him at school.

This experience at such a young age led him to dedicate his life to “the struggle against hunger” so that other children would not have to suffer as he and many millions of others have and continue to.

30

Features Despite being worlds apart from 1930s Brazil, there are still children in our schools who are struggling from listlessness and an inability to learn. Nearly 300,000 children live below the poverty-line in New Zealand. According to research conducted by Massey University for KidsCan, the adverse health effects of food insecurity on children “include fatigue, more frequent illness including stomach- and head-aches and colds, as well as long-term disease and illness.”

We have people and communities who have dedicated their lives to the struggle against hunger. Organisations like KidsCan, EatMyLunch, and Kai for Kids exist because there is a need for them. I believe we can do better than to inflict unnecessary suffering on children by not providing them food at school if they are hungry. If someone as intellectually brilliant as Freire had his learning affected by hunger, this highlights that hunger as a bodily feeling is one that children can’t just ignore, or work through while trying to learn.

Freire responded to his early experience of poverty through his study in the education field. His work was influenced by those such as Erich Fromm, Martin Luther King, and Che Guevara. According to the 2006 UNESCO Education for All Global Monitoring Report, Freire’s teaching methodology brought “the learner’s socio-cultural realities into the learning process itself ” and used this to challenge social processes: “Central to his pedagogy is the notion of ‘critical literacy’, a goal to be attained in part through engaging with books and other written texts, but, more profoundly, through ‘reading’ (i.e. interpreting, reflecting on, interrogating, theorising, investigating, exploring, probing and questioning) and ‘writing’ (acting on and dialogically transforming) the social world.”

Through his work, Freire observed the ignorance and lethargy, the “culture of silence”, of oppressed peoples, coming to the conclusion that this was a direct outcome of their paternalistic economic, social, and political oppression. In other words, those who have internalised the dehumanisation of their own being may “fatalistically accept their exploitation.” Their perception of themselves and their inherent power and ability to change their circumstances and outcomes have been “impaired by their submersion in the reality of oppression.”

Even in societies where there may be many challenges to freedom, Freire strongly believed that a culture of silence can be overcome. He had a conviction “that every human being, no matter how ‘ignorant’ or submerged in the ‘culture of silence’ he or she may be, is capable of looking critically at the world.” In other words, a person can gradually, through their interactions with others, become conscious of their own perception of personal and social reality. More often than not, this transformation of consciousness is facilitated by other students or our peers, rather than the traditional teacher-student relationships we see modelled in the education system.

In my own experience, the majority of my learning has been from other children, students, parents, aunties, uncles, and elders. People telling theirs and

31

Ataria Rangipikitia Sharman

To name the world

their families’ stories has the ability to connect to the consciousness of others, allowing them to, in turn, relate these back to their own experiences, perceptions, and worldview. These learning experiences can happen at any moment.

Recently I spent a weekend in Northland with my auntie attending our hapū strategic planning hui. She took this time as a golden opportunity to tell her favourite niece (I wish) a number of stories about my nanny, other whānau members, and our whakapapa — she kept me up until midnight. One story that really stuck with me was the one about my nanny chasing two gang members down the streets of West Auckland who had been following my aunties home from school. The more I listened, the more I was inspired by how tough she learned to be to be protect the ones she loved. Learning in this intimate and personal environment taught me important aspects of life, lessons that I don’t get elsewhere; other than getting a headache from my auntie talking so much, this was a very special example of a learning space outside of the traditional education system.

Only a small percentage of my learning has been the result of teacherstudent relationships, including my studies at university. The teacher-student relationships that have been the most beneficial for me personally have been the ones that eventually evolved into real friendship, partnership, and collaboration, where the hierarchy of teacher and pupil is upset and we both ended up learning from each other. I would say I’ve learned more from my sister and my friends than I ever did from my teachers at school. If you look at your own life you may see that this holds true for you as well.

Freire believed that while technological innovations may provide the resources for an increase in consciousness, we need young people today to take back their right “to say his or her own word, to name the world.” One of the key ways in which the consciousness of humanity can be increased is through the use of media. The new media and youth-led/student-to-student media movements like Salient possess the ability to “open the way to acute awareness of this new bondage” and the realisation that the educational system today, if it is a system of conformity to the current system, is their enemy.

Freire saw time and time again illiterate peasants who participated in an educational experience come to an awareness of a new sense of self and hope.

As more and more people use the power of thought to “negate accepted limits and open the way to a new future,” then they will come to realise that they too can create, and that all work can be creative. It is through this creative work that Freire believed that they will change the world.

“And as those who have been completely marginalised are so radically transformed, they are no longer willing to be mere objects, responding to changes occurring around them; they are more likely to decide to take upon themselves the struggle to change the structures of society, which until now have served to oppress them.” (Pedagogy of the Oppressed)

Cheska Brown cheska.v.b@gmail.com

34

Features

Written by Brodie Fraser

The first prisons in New Zealand were established in the 1840s, and there are now 18 prisons nationwide.1 According to the Department of Corrections, the prison population was 10,035 in March — of which, 50.9% are Māori, 32.0% are Pākehā, 11.0% are Pasifika, and 4.7% are “Other (incl. Asian).” Compare this to the ethnic breakdown of the general population — 74.0% are Pākeha, 14.9% are Māori, 11.8% are Asian, and 7.4% are Pasifika.

At present, prisoners serving a sentence in New Zealand are unable to vote, and the disproportionate rates of imprisonment mean disenfranchisement is racialised. Moreover, the disparity is increasing: the proportion of Māori imprisoned in 2016 was higher than any time in recorded history. Compounding that, New Zealand has one of the highest imprisonment rates in the western world. We are locking so many people, particularly Māori, out of our democracy.

The history of imprisonment in Aotearoa shows that the racial bias of our sentencing and imprisonment rates is not a new issue. After the Land Wars, hundreds of Māori were unfairly imprisoned and were never tried — some of whom were held in prisons until their death. Peaceful resistors at Parihaka were imprisoned for their actions, the most notable being Te Whiti, Tohu, and Tītokowaru. It wasn’t until earlier this year that descendents of the Parihaka community received a formal apology from the Crown. It took over 130 years for the people of Parihaka to receive an apology for the horrific injustices that their ancestors were subjected to by the colonial government. How long, then, is it going to take for us as a country to address and acknowledge the ongoing injustice of our prison system? How long will it take for us to actually listen to the voices of our prisoners?

1 There are also four “youth justice residences” that are operated under Oranga Tamariki: Ministry for Vulnerable Children.

35

Brodie Fraser

Parihaka, at the time of the assault by the armed constabulary in 1881.

William Andrews Collis. 1881. Alexander Turnbull Library

The return of the ploughman prisoners to Parihaka Pa-. The group of women on the left are swirling poi. William Andrews Collis. 1898. Alexander Turnbull Library

Locked Out

36

Features The law has changed back and forth a lot, with politicians and the public divided over whether or not prisoners should be able to vote. Initially, the Constitution Act of 1852 said that any prisoner who had committed “treason, felony, or infamous offence” could not. Subsequent alterations were made to legislation in 1879, 1905, 1956, 1975, 1977, and in 1993. The change in 1905 tightened the restrictions around voting, looking instead at the length of sentence rather than the type. In 1956, the law changed so that anyone serving a sentence at the time of an election was unable to vote. This was reversed in 1975, but then changed back again in 1977. In 1993, the legislation changed to re-enfranchise some prisoners, except for those who were sentenced to life, preventative detention, or for longer than three years.

In 2010, National Party MP Paul Quinn introduced the Electoral (Disqualification of Sentenced Prisoners) Amendment Bill. This Bill passed, changing the law back to preventing prisoners from voting; it also removed prisoners from the electoral roll. Despite the significance of the law change, the debates from the final reading are some of the most bizarre things I’ve read.

Quinn began by attacking the opposition, then moving on to give examples of people who have gone to prison, and finished by attacking people in ivory towers, as well as “champagne socialists.” He failed to actually give any sound reason as to why the Bill should pass — aside from a brief mention that it would, apparently, reduce crime statistics.

Labour MP Clayton Cosgrove counter-attacked Quinn, and threw a few zingers around. He managed to discuss the specifics of the Bill, unlike Quinn.

He talked about how it was unlikely to reduce recidivism, or support victims. He also noted that it was essentially a political pamphlet; unsurprisingly enough, he noted that the only submission at the Select Committee stage in support of the Bill was from David Farrar. The debates raged on. Some speeches were bizarre, some empty, some tangential, some good.

Then it was time for the ACT Party to speak. Hilary Calvert stood up and said the following: “I cannot pretend this Bill is my favourite thing. Trevor Mallard leaving the House earlier, and not being able to vote while he was away, could count as my favourite thing. Perhaps popping a ping-pong ball in the mouth of the honourable member over there who all day keeps turning his head from sideto-side with his mouth open could count as my favourite thing. This Bill is not my favourite thing. However, ACT is supporting National on this Bill.” It was an utterly bizarre moment. Eventually, the Bill passed. It was regarded by many as meaningless, serving no purpose except to further alienate prisoners and remove their human rights just a little bit more.

Section 12 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act states: “Every New Zealand citizen who is of or over the age of 18 years — has the right to vote in genuine periodic elections of members of the House of Representatives, which elections shall be by equal suffrage and by secret ballot…” Enfranchisement isvery clearly set out here. Attorney-General Chris Finlayson released a report to accompany the Bill about its human rights implications. In the second sentence of the report he wrote: “I consider that the Bill appears to be unjustifiably inconsistent with the electoral rights affirmed by s 12 of the Bill of Rights Act.” A bit further into the report he said, “The objective of the Bill is not rationally linked to the blanket ban on prisoner voting.” He then moved on, and said that “The irrational effects of the Bill also cause it to be disproportionate to its objective.” How preposterous that a Bill that the Attorney-General repeatedly called “irrational”

37

Brodie Fraser

Locked Out

and inconsistent with the Bill of Rights Act managed to pass through the House.

The Human Rights Commission and the Law Society made similar points in their submissions to the Law and Order Select Committee when the Bill was being considered.

After reading this debate, I contacted each political party for comment on this matter — I wanted to know what each party’s stance on prisoner enfranchisement was, whether they think a lack of voting rights violates human rights, whether prisoner enfranchisement is a political priority for the justice/ corrections portfolio, and what work — if any — they had been doing in regards to prisoner enfranchisement.

Green Party Justice Spokesperson (at the time of writing) David Clendon said that his party strongly opposed the legislation, as “it is an unnecessary and unjustifiable violation of human rights. It also serves to further alienate prisoners from the society that all but a very small number of them will eventually rejoin.”

He said that there are a number of no- or low-cost changes that can easily undo a number of the National Party’s changes to the prison system. He also referred to the law as “mischief,” which I think is apt given the debates that occurred while it was being passed.

Labour Party Justice Spokesperson (at the time of writing) Jacinda Ardern also said that her party opposed the legislation. She emphasised that this Bill should never have come before Parliament, and that the Labour Party did what they could to prevent it at the time, and has tried to raise this issue a few more times since.

The Associate Minister of Justice, Mark Mitchell, said that Parliament carefully considered the Bill of Rights Act when debating the Bill, and that the Attorney-General “brought these implications to the House’s attention.” He said that the Government has no plans to amend the law, and noted that the Justice and Electoral Committee considered the issue after the 2014 election, but decided to keep the law as is. Referring to the removal of 10,000 people’s fundamental right to vote as “implications” seems inappropriate. Is this blasé attitude how the National Party approach all human rights? While I acknowledge that MPs and Ministers are incredibly busy people who are juggling a lot of different work and issues, it seems strange to me that anyone — particularly an elected official — can be so nonchalant about the removal of the right to vote from part of our citizenry.

I didn’t receive replies from New Zealand First, ACT, United Future, or the Māori Party.

If you’ve read this far, you might notice one really important thing missing — what do prisoners themselves think about this law? Often when we talk about different forms of justice, prisons, crime statistics, and our judicial process, we forget one vital part: what are the implications for those who are incarcerated?

How do they feel about this? Has their opinion been sought? What effect will this have on them? Prisoners have nuanced thoughts, feelings, and opinions — their voices are important, especially when it comes to issues that directly impact their lives.

When I first started thinking about this piece, I was really keen to try and get in contact with some prisoners to chat about their thoughts on their inability to vote. We spent months trying but struggled to get in contact with anyone we could interview. I contacted every prisoner advocacy group I could find, called a number of prisons in the region, and tried to get in contact with Arthur Taylor, a prisoner who has taken legal action over the lack of voting rights afforded to prisoners.

38

Features Communications staff from Rimutaka Prison told us that they don’t do this kind of thing. When we pressed them about access for journalists they said that they might allow access if you’re with North & South or some established magazine, but in this instance said no. Prisoners in New Zealand are ridiculously inaccessible.2 I contacted Dr Katie Bruce from JustSpeak about her thoughts on the disenfranchisement of prisoners. JustSpeak is a charity that works towards giving rangatahi a voice in discussions about the justice system. Their kaupapa centres around the belief that many people are not heard on important decisions in the justice system, especially those who are most directly impacted. When we spoke, Dr Bruce noted that the Court of Appeal recently upheld a High Court decision that the ban on prisoner voting does not align with the Bill of Rights Act — but that this was never in dispute. She said that “the Government agrees [that the law breaches human rights], but thinks that this is a case in which human rights should be limited.” She said that with the general election so close, we should all be calling for parliament to urgently (re)enfranchise prisoners, and that not allowing them to vote undermines the legitimacy of the vote itself. She noted that “the disqualification of prisoners from voting is founded in a belief that voting is a privilege, rather than a right, and in regulating the right to vote in this way it undermines the fundamental democratic principle of universal suffrage.” She said that “it is the universality of the suffrage that underpins representative democracies and gives legitimacy to the laws made by our representatives. Given the mass incarceration of Māori, prisoner disenfranchisement in New Zealand is racialised disenfranchisement.”

The Court of Appeal decision that Dr Bruce referred to came about following prisoner Arthur Taylor’s legal challenge to the disenfranchisement of prisoners in 2014. Following lengthy court proceedings, the High Court ruled that this blanket ban on the ability of prisoners to vote cannot be justified in a free and democratic society. The Crown was unimpressed with being told it had made some bad law, so the case went to the Court of Appeal. Earlier this year, the Court of Appeal upheld Taylor’s challenge. Prisoner disenfranchisement remains, but this was a pretty big moment for the way that our legal and legislative systems work, in regards to the separation of powers between the legislature and judiciary. It also shows that there are prisoners who are upset that they do not have the right to vote, and are willing to stand up and say that this law should not continue to exist.

I also contacted advocacy group No Pride In Prisons (NPIP) about their views on prisoner disenfranchisement. NPIP are a prison abolitionist and advocacy group. Spokesperson Emmy Rākete was straight to the point and very clear: “Removing prisoner voting rights is illegal. Everyone over a certain age in this country should have the right to vote. If we want to believe that this country 2 Many people end up in prison because of the effects of social exclusion and isolation, so further isolation is not going to be beneficial when it is eventually time for them to be released. Excluding people from their communities, support networks, and the world in general doesn’t seem like it can have any positive effect. Surely if our prison system took rehabilitation and social reintegration seriously, it would try to make sure prisoners are less isolated from the rest of us. Part of this, then, should be the accessibility that we have to each other. It should not be so frustratingly difficult for us to speak to prisoners, and for prisoners to speak to us. Community ties are so important for physical, mental, and social wellbeing. We should be promoting and encouraging these ties, not stifling them.

39

Brodie Fraser

LockedNews Out

has fair, just governance, the absolute minimum should be that everyone has the right to vote. At the moment New Zealand does not even meet that minimum, because thousands of people are being deprived of that right in prison.”

She said that New Zealand’s pattern of incarceration disproportionately affects Māori and Pacific people: “When incarcerated people are having their votes taken away, ethnic minorities are having their votes taken away. That is simply racist.” She also pointed out that “a number of prisoners have voiced concern about having their right to vote taken off them,” referencing Arthur Taylor’s victory at the High Court. “Incarcerated people are politically conscious people, they are part of this country, and they are owed the same rights that the rest of us have. This means freedom from the torture of solitary confinement and it means being able to vote.”

Disenfranchising prisoners silences the voices of some of our most vulnerable people. This needs to be part of a wider conversation that we have about the role of prisons, and the racially biased nature of our prison and justice systems. Election day — September 23 — is rapidly approaching. I hope that there’s at least a small group of us who are talking to our communities about the removal of prisoner’s voting rights this election cycle. We can, and need to, do better for them. Giving them back the right to vote would be a start.

When you go to cast your vote this election, spare a thought for the 10,000 people in prison who are being denied the right to have their voice heard.

Voting is a right, not a privilege.

40

Features

Written by Dan Kelly

^

41

Dan Kelly

To Each Their Own: New Models for Water Care

“Nature has introduced great variety into the landscape, but man has displayed a passion for simplifying it. Thus he undoes the built-in checks and balances by which nature holds the species within bounds . . . Have we fallen into a mesmerised state that makes us accept as inevitable that which is inferior or detrimental, as though having lost the will or the vision to demand that which is good?”

— Rachel Carson

I’ll forgive you some nihilism. In an age of global problems, worsening environmental outcomes, and a government so out to lunch they’ve stayed on for spaghetti pizza, it can be hard to know where to start. What effort should I make that is worthy? Well, says Sam Judd, environmentalist and co-founder of Sustainable Coastlines, it all starts at home: “The challenges we face are global, but the solutions to solve them are local — they have to be.” As Sam points out, we can’t be everywhere, and nor would we want to be.

Started in 2009, in the wake of the global financial crisis, Sustainable Coastlines is all about getting out there and making a difference you can see: planting trees, clearing rubbish from beaches and streams, and setting in place the systems to ensure it doesn’t get there again. “Our mission statement is to enable people to look after the places they love, so it’s only going to happen if the local people have the resources, the established business models, and the mentorship, the access to the training, and the tools — that’s how we’re going to solve these challenges: many many people using best practice solutions.”

While Sam’s own story began with connection — what he describes as “a pretty deep love for the ocean” — his awareness from being a surfer and spearfisherman soon expanded. Cleaning up beaches was satisfying on multiple levels but, as Sustainable Coastlines grew, Sam says his motivation has only increased: “First of all I didn’t want to see my playground getting trashed, and then, you know, we started creating jobs in the middle of the global financial crisis… But the motivation’s bigger than that, it’s bigger than the environment… The challenge is relevant to human health and to our own family’s health, really.”

The issue is plastic, what we do with it, and how our excessive use is coming back to bite us. As the environmental movement has long explained, we live in a closed system: there is no “away”. Discarded by humans, plastic enters the ocean, eventually breaking into pieces small enough for fish to eat — where, in Sam’s words, “it has the potential to contaminate their flesh with carcinogens and endocrine disrupting chemicals — and I feed fish to my own family, just as many people do... this is an issue that a lot of people care about.”

The buzzword is scale. What ways can you get a broad cross-section of society involved? While not targeting your usual “tree huggers”, Sam explains how connecting litter with poisoning seafood is a game changer: “As soon as you’re talking about bad behaviour starting to impact whānau, it’s got a much broader base of support, particularly in older people… I can also take that story into a prison and I can motivate hardened criminals, who are mainly violent offenders, to put their energy and time into helping us, because the one thing that they all miss is whānau.”

Engaging the prison population is part of Sam’s answer to a long-standing shortcoming of the environmental movement: getting numbers on the ground.

42

Features For most people life is frantically busy, and it can be hard to find the time to move from caring to acting. Cue the Department of Corrections, their ten thousand inmates, and the huge number of people serving community sentences and orders.

Originally recruited to help exhausted volunteers with auditing rubbish, Sustainable Coastlines have been working with the Department of Corrections for some seven years now, first with people serving community-based sentences, and now in the prisons themselves. Sam is quick to point out that at no stage is anyone forced to be involved. Instead, it’s about “creating tools and solutions that work for different demographics of society.”

It might seem uncomfortable at first, but engaging the prison population to improve water quality is a far cry from say… oh, I don’t know… underpaying prisoners to wash your laundry (as VUW was discovered to be doing earlier in the year). As Sam explains, it’s a common good, organised by a nonprofit, and run in a way that seeks to benefit the prisoners, not exploit them. Prisoners receive education and eventually qualifications, improving their productivity during the clean ups, but also working toward a goal to reduce re-offending. In many ways, it’s about giving back — the sort of rehabilitation Corrections would do well to incorporate more of… why not have it help the planet?

Building on their work with community-based offenders and the rubbish collection and auditing they help with — part of their education and behavioural change efforts — Sustainable Coastlines have recently established a native tree nursery at Waikeria prison in the Waikato. The nursery grows plants specifically targeted towards riparian planting, with local rangatahi marae-based initiative Pūniu River Care working to get the plants in the ground, helping to filter runoff and restore the river back to a healthy state. Sustainable Coastlines is involved here too, passing on their knowledge and connections, helping to empower the social enterprise to achieve their goal and protect the places they love.

If all goes well, Sam plans to expand the work at Pūniu: “My aim is to run a large scale pilot, with four prisons and four local nonprofits, in the upper North Island, and plant 1.6 million native trees in the next three to five years.”

As with their other work, detailed monitoring and evaluation will be used, with the end goal that of a model for cleaning up water while creating jobs and reducing reoffending. “If we’re able to establish that… my prediction is that it would roll out nationwide immediately and then internationally, because every community has poor water quality, and every community has crime, and everyone needs jobs.”

While I’m not exactly the most job-loving of humans, the thought of an industry around replanting is extremely appealing. And as Sam explained, the journey to incarceration is one of alienation, so it’s about finding the things that do motivate people: “A lot of these guys, they don’t want to go work on a dairy farm, they’ll be more likely to sit on the couch, to sit on the dole than work on a dairy farm — but if you’re talking about a marae-based social enterprise where they grow and plant trees with their cousins, and clean up the water so their kids can swim in the river without getting sick, and so that they can catch tuna for their tangis and birthdays and special occasions, then you’re starting to hit an area people actually want to work in.”

It all comes back to the local, the places that resonate most. While Sam pointed out the fit between the high levels of Māori incarceration and Māori spiritual connection with the whenua, the motivations for such work are varied — irrespective of background. “Whether your motivation is for looking after local species, or catching eels, or whether it’s being able to go surf in a river

43

Dan Kelly

To Each Their Own: New Models for Water Care

mouth without getting sick, or if you’re a bird lover — it doesn’t matter, the same intervention can achieve all those things, so that’s where we’ve seen it become quite effective.”

In addition to their physical labour, Sustainable Coastlines also work to educate and raise awareness, telling the story of what happens when plastic goes in the ocean and seeking to reduce its incidence: “a fence on top of the cliff rather than being the ambulance at the bottom.” To this end, they’ve recently built a new education centre on the Auckland waterfront, working with both the council and Mount Eden Prison. In similar fashion to the planting scheme, prisoners receive training and skills while working towards protecting the environment — in this case using repurposed materials to help construct the centre — enabling participation and a sense of ownership for those society would rather forget.

One criticism of the environmental movement is its often negative framing: focusing on the things we need less of, not more. Sustainable Coastlines looks to target both, removing the source of our problem and seeking to inspire action around flourishing environments and our connection to them.

In the context of life on earth, humanity is but a blip, with our current, growth-based economic model just a small footnote at the end. It’s easy to dream of a different system, but we are where we are and, as Sam points out, now is the time to act. “We need 500 Zealandias or something, but to do that is going to cost an incredible amount of money… we need hundreds of millions of native trees to even start to look at turning the scales on water quality, amongst several other interventions… we’re talking very, very big numbers and very big current cost models, so we need to innovate to create tools that deliver solutions efficiently, and that requires thinking outside the square.”

Add that to our shameful incarceration numbers and the potential to address ongoing recidivism, and you’ve got the start of an interesting, large-scale mix.

As Shannon Te Huia of Pūniu River Care says of the prisoners they work with: “It lets them become involved in something bigger than us all.” And in that bigger world, the care we need to help it: one tree at a time. * Sustainable Coastlines run a number of tree planting and training days around the country. You can find details online or, if you’re looking for a postgrad topic, Sam indicated an interest in working with people keen to help the cause: anything from monitoring and evaluation systems for restoration work to behavioural change interventions. In his words “there’s all sorts of different fields we need help with from the academic world” — they’ll be on the ground, waiting.

44

Features

Written by Cameron Gray

It is estimated that one in every 66 New Zealanders has an autistic spectrum disorder, such as the high-functioning Asperger’s syndrome. I have Asperger’s, which directly influences my view of the world.

Here’s how a typical day usually goes for me.

I arise from my slumber to the squeal of my phone alarm, groggy but thankful that the dose of quetiapine from last night has done its job. Even with lectures starting in an hour, there’s no time for a shower since the bus leaves in thirty minutes. Time to start the routine, boy.

Dressed in the usual outfit of a black letterman jersey and Adidas trackpants, I gulp down a capsule of fluoxetine with a glass of water while one of my flatmates fixes her needlessly complicated breakfast of assorted fried vegetables and protein supplements; it smells pretty nice, but I’m happy with some peanut butter on toast. We say “good morning” to each other, in that way that barely acknowledges each other’s existence. I’m pretty sure she doesn’t hate me, but since she’s one of those people that uses text slang in her social media posts about how awesome her life is despite being a law/commerce student who can barely keep her internalised anger under control, I know we’ll come to blows soon enough, probably over the pile of dishes in the sink (we do).

The bus ride to university is probably the moment in the day when I feel the most lonely. Even though I’m surrounded by others, no one is talking to each other or making each other feel welcome. Everyone’s caught up in their own vision of the day ahead, a transient moment of transition where the destination is ultimately more important than the journey. Nothing could possibly be done to spice up the trek to Kelburn, save for some sort of accident. I clutch onto my bag, hoping that it won’t come to that, since I’d be late. I dutifully give my thanks to the driver as I tag off.

The lecture theatre helps to make me feel a bit calm since I’ll be surrounded by the familiar people who happen to share at least one of my interests, even though I know I’ll never talk to any of them in any sort of casual, non-academic context.

At this point I’ve pretty much just given up on the concept of friendship and started doing what Tyrion Lannister does: acknowledging them with a bit of wit, since you never know when you’ll need them, even if they don’t know or care who you are. Perhaps not the wisest strategy, but it’s worked well so far. I do my best to pay attention, but sometimes when my laptop is in front of me I can’t help but drift away in the realms of the internet. Someone confronted me about that and said it was too distracting, and I keep that in mind whenever I stray too far away.

Besides, I can usually get the notes off Blackboard.

45

Cameron Gray

Aspie on Campus

Sometimes in between classes I go through the bowels of the Student Union Building to see my counsellor, where I can vent my frustrations, get some advice, and just have someone to talk to who will actually listen. Really, all I need is a bit of help to deal with the stresses placed upon me by the necessities of student life. I know my degree, as useless as some people may believe it to be, is my best chance at living independently and productively, but without this kind of assistance I’d probably be back in Napier leeching off my parents and on the dole with no hope.

Thank goodness I have games to keep myself distracted from this prospect and any other worries. I even make something of my hobby by writing about it each week! Then Mum calls, asks how I’m doing, and even if nothing is going right for me, I have the nerve to say: “pretty good, yeah.”

That’s how things usually go. If I don’t have a panic attack, of course. Thankfully I’m at a point in my therapy where those are a rare occurrence. Nothing, however, is truly certain, other than the fact that I just don’t know how to deal with other people, though most probably they don’t know how to deal with me.

*

At its most basic, an autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) describes conditions that relate to an impairment in the development of three areas. The first concerns language skills; a person with ASD can have trouble understanding and/or using spoken language and non-verbal communication, such as facial expressions.

The second relates to social behaviour, where someone may have difficulty interacting with others, no matter the context. The third relates to cognitive skills, where a person’s flexibility in thinking is restricted and they engage in obsessive and/or repetitive behaviour.

Since every person with ASD is different, specific difficulties can vary wildly.

Asperger’s syndrome is on the high-functioning end of the spectrum, meaning those with the condition are usually able to live in the community and be a productive member of society, in spite of the challenges they may face. In my case, I feel that of the three areas, social interaction is the one that affects me the most. I find it almost impossible to maintain eye contact whenever I speak with someone, which some might find impolite. As much as I might be paying attention to the other person, if they think I’m not paying attention to them, it ruins the whole conversation.

Of course, there are other symptoms. In my experience, Asperger’s is not necessarily a mental illness in itself, but it does contribute to feelings of depression and anxiety, since I’m constantly thinking about what others think of me and am thus afraid of doing something which makes me look bad. Whether it’s stressing out over an assignment I’ve left to the last minute, or throwing a calculator at someone who keeps annoying me (true story), any sort of instability is not good for me. I’ve often felt worthless and belittled because of my struggles, and suicide is something that has come up far too often in my mind as a result.

Fuck that.

46

Features I do have to acknowledge that I’m in a rather privileged position. I’m a Pākehā cis male from a lower middle class background, and I can mostly afford to receive the help that I’m getting. I’m not asking that you pity me, just that you understand what I’m thinking and why I’m thinking it. I’ve never really felt discriminated against because of my condition, but I easily sympathise with those who have because of their own differences. We should embrace diversity, not just in the way we look or act, but in how we think. Autistic spectrum disorders may officially be a disability, but I don’t necessarily feel disadvantaged, because for me it’s ultimately just a different way of thinking.

*

Whenever I know that I need some help at university, I know where to find it, and thankfully I usually get it.

VUW’s counselling services have been somewhat maligned while I’ve been a student here, mostly because many people who urgently need them have to wait up to a month or more for an appointment. Any delay with mental health matters is unhelpful and potentially dangerous, and sometimes you just can’t wait. However, once you’re in the system and have seen a counsellor it’s generally easy to book a follow-up with them, and it’s always good to build a rapport with whoever you end up seeing. The support I’ve received from counselling has been invaluable, and without it I wouldn’t be continuing my studies.

I’ve also been quite lucky that the lecturers I’ve had in my English and media studies courses have generally been more than willing to give extensions when I’m having a few problems with my emotional state. The Humanities in general just seem to be filled with good people, which I appreciate. One of the first things you’ll come to learn during your degree is that someone being a good researcher does not always mean they are capable of teaching; a good lecturer is a good teacher that should be able to connect with their students, not just show up to give a spiel about whatever and hope everyone’s taking good notes. They don’t necessarily have to care about one student’s situation, but I feel lucky that most of my lecturers do. It’s all about empathy, a trait that doesn’t seem very common even though our society is seemingly more connected than ever. I’d love it if more lecturers did this and weren’t so eager to just let students go if they can’t seem to handle it, because they’re probably one of the causes of all the stress.

Speaking of stress, exams suck for everyone. I’ve always thought the worst way to get a gauge on someone’s intelligence is to lock them in a room for three hours and force them to write. As I qualify to work with Disability Services, exams are a little less stressful since I can have a smaller exam room and allotted break times so I can relax, regather my thoughts, and get on with the job at hand.

This kind of service is vital to ensure as many people as possible can pass courses and get their degrees.

These kinds of services weren’t available to me when I was in high school. I was pretty much on my own, and it’s probably no surprise that some of my darkest

47

Cameron Gray

Aspie on Campus

moments were during this period. They say high school is supposed to set you up for bigger things, including tertiary study, and yet most schools are poorly equipped to do so if you are anything beyond the typical. These support structures are vital because they allow everyone to succeed, and a system that only rewards those who can hack it without help is one that shows no regard for the wellbeing of the people it’s designed to assist: the students.

*

Everyone has their own struggles, but you should never be made to feel that you don’t matter, for whatever reason. That’s where intolerance and bigotry stem from, the idea that one individual life can somehow be more important that an entire group of people. If you need help, speak up about it, because you might be surprised to find that there are those out there who are only too happy to give it to you. You just have to find it.

Also, don’t tell people to fuck off when you’re in a bad mood. I’ve found that only makes it worse.

~”…

48

ARTS

49

Poem

dawn one day i will pack up my bags quietly carefully without warning and leave (colourless sky) for a place where there is no post— __________________________________ [tenor♀ for afterimage:] parcelled Sunday & postcolonial theory (yet wedded to mis-history) red dawn raids, then the Mandela exodus […into…] colour blindness — Luka ‫ תור‬林-Cowley

50

Film

M LThe Party (2017) — Sally Porter I F Janet (Kirsten Scott Thomas) has just been named the new Minister of Health and invites a group of friends to celebrate with her. Her husband Bill (Timothy Spall) is drunk and despondent, her friend April (Patricia Clarkson) can barely contain her nihilist despair, and Tom (Cillian Murphy) is on the verge of a nervous breakdown. The happier participants — Jinny, Martha, and Gottfried (played by Emily Mortimer, Cherry Jones, and Bruno Ganz, respectively) —attempt to paint a smile on proceedings, but they quickly begin to crack.

It’s a familiar set-up: a group of respected actors are given a witty script and confined to a single location. At its best, this kind of melodrama can be the perfect representation of Sartre’s declaration that “hell is other people.” Of course, People Arguing and Coming to Terms with ThingsTM is not a very cinematic premise, but, under Porter’s direction, this comedy of manners is a tightlywound machine.

The editing undergirds every verbal barb, and quick cuts to Spall’s empty eyes and Clarkson’s raised eyebrows act as the ultimate form of punctuation. These expressions, whether they’re smirks, cringes, or thousand-yard stares, are cast into an even more vivid light by the film’s black and white cinematography (made more impressive by the Embassy’s giant screen). These emotions aren’t just writ large, but stretched to absolute, hyperbolic limits. In any other circumstance, the shift from verbal (and emotional) violence to physical altercations would seem contrived; in this film, however, every slap is an extension of a character’s tongue, a natural overflow of their simmering frustration.

The Party is the funniest film I have seen all year: there is nothing more fascinating than watching characters snap on screen, and nothing more transgressive than being able to laugh about it.

— Tim Overton

51

Visual Art

BLIND SPOT Not far into Teju Cole’s new book, Blind Spot, after Nuremberg and before Muottas Muragal, comes Auckland. A photograph of the Aotea Centre, reflected in a glass, or maybe chrome, surface spreads across one page before creeping beyond the spine into the other. The light is dappled, the landscape slightly distorted, the human presence shrouded and unknowable. I looked at the photograph for a while, wondering how it seems to float before I realised it is because Cole himself is not reflected within it.

This sense of distance carries throughout the book, which is intimate but evokes a sense of solitude. Cole never appears within the images, and although the texts are written in the first person they have a strange play to them, as though “I” becomes “me”: reader. “Auckland”, the text beside the photograph reads, “Tane and his siblings conspire to push apart their mother, Papatuanuku, the earth, and father, Ranginui, the sky. In the space forced between the two is the light of the world. The light falls and flows between two eyelids.”

Light falls and flows until the shadows, reflections, and various plays of light become to feel prolonged; until we forget these images track instances, not passages, of time.

Cole takes photographs that look like memories. The texture of memory, he writes, is “an intense combination of freedom verging on randomness and a specificity that feels oneiric.” The texture of memory is the soft curves of light playing on a mesh curtain in a hotel room in Nuremberg, folding in and out of shadow; or, perhaps it's cooler to the touch: the harsh facets of a mirrored surface. The texture of memory has never been the smooth, slippery surface of a photographic print.

Could we consider reflection as synonymous to memory?

Both look backward — “re”, as prefix (recollection, reflection) is derived from the latin for “behind” — which is not to say they cannot move forward. Think of the Hawaiian term for future: Ka ua mahope, “the time which comes after or behind.” Blind Spot features many photographs of reflection: in glass, in puddles, in the rephotographing of images. Cole writes that these subjects, images already made, are “neither more nor less than the ‘real’ elements by which they were framed [...] Which world? See how? We who?”

Cole’s instances of reflection draw our attention back to the photographic lens, reminding us that what we know of the scene is only what the frame allows us: that the photograph is always, at least, a view of a view. Blind Spot asks us to look for the continuity of places in spaces where we might not have thought to: in dreams, in dappled light, in shadows, in reflection; “hearing the silence because we have heard some of the sounds.”1 — Hanahiva Rose 1. Greg Denning, “Empowering Imaginations,” The Contemporary Pacific 9(2) (1997): 419-29.

52

The Colour of Magic — Terry Pratchett The world is a wonderful place full of crazy nuts.

Sometimes, it’s best to escape into a world that reflects our constant low-level panic that our world doesn’t really make sense. That way, we can be reassured that we’re not alone in thinking this — Terry Pratchett crafted us who are perpetual worriers a life raft.

The Colour of Magic (1983) is Pratchett’s first Discworld novel. The Discworld is what it sounds like: a world shaped like a disc, instead of a globe (and carried on the back of four elephants and a giant star turtle). This world contains a whole lot of magic. Rincewind, the main character, dreams of a world that makes sense, and is hugely disappointed when he discovers the world’s first camera is not, as he vaguely suspects, a device that captures light on a chemically-treated paper, but is the home of a small pixie with an easel and paintbrush.

That’s the most obvious thing about Pratchett’s writing, actually. It’s funny.

Constantly, irreverently, unpredictably funny. I was too serious, or too sincere, as a child to like it. I thought it was crass and ignoble. Which it is, but I’ve only recently grown cynical enough to take it as the joke it was meant to be.

The other thing is that it’s commentary.

Nothing better than a children’s book of wizards and heroes to also be a severe tract on social ills, right? But fantasy novels at the time were known for clichéd writing, presenting within their many, many, many pages a long stream of arrogant heroes, limp-wristed heroines with remarkably sensual yet virginal beauty, overtly sexualised witches who were evil seductresses and somehow also easily thwarted, old, wise white men and not-white pagan savages in need of civilisation (I didn’t do this on purpose, but isn’t that Game of Thrones?). Anyway, Pratchett provides a healthy dose of sense and humour to this pile of boring. Heroes are thugs and illiterates, the main character is a cowardly criminal, wizards are violent and self-aggrandising, and women can be patricidal dragon-tamers. It’s great.

So why would anyone choose to lose

Books

themselves in this irrational fantasy instead of pulling up their boots and getting to work fixing the world? It’s a good question for a student to ask (except the English majors — those guys are away with the clouds at all hours). Well, because fantasy creates worlds unlike our own.

It imagines things differently, impossibly. It demands that we accept dragons alongside the equality of humankind, and when we believe in dragons we learn to believe in equality.

Sometimes it does the opposite, and we learn judgement and revenge. But these things are lodged in our minds and they affect how we see reality. So when you read a good fantasy book, you’re taking the first step for practical change.

You’re teaching yourself that change is possible.

Mind you, I don’t agree philosophically with everything that Pratchett wrote. But when I read his books, I build empathy for people who do. And I remember how much I used to adore fantasy novels when I was twelve, and how deeply I would fall into them. And again, it’s really funny. The many-legged Luggage runs around and eats people. How is that a sentence I can write?

I’m already reading the second Discworld novel as we speak — The Light Fantastic. It has programmer priests and a candy house in the woods and Death learns how to play bridge with Famine and War. It couldn’t be further from the real world right now. But I don’t think of it as escapism. It’s just taking the long way round towards reality instead of marching straight there.

Read this series if you never did because you thought the name Terry was gross, or if you feel under pressure and need space to breathe, or if you would rather believe in dragons than in guns.

— Kimberley McIvor

53

The Swimmer The Swimmer, written and directed by Manuel Saez, and performed at Bats Theatre, immediately appealed to me because I’m a swimmer and I was just so excited to see a play that involved this very individualistic, lonely sport and was curious as to how it would be staged. When I read the synopsis I was even more excited: it is the story of two young professional swimmers, Anna (Meron McCardle) and Tabitha (Anastasia Dolinina), whose love is hindered by Anna’s overbearing former competitive swimmer mother (Kassie Mcluskie), also called Anna, who keeps pushing her daughter exponentially to be the best. Swimming is a highly competitive sport and also rather odd as everyone is half or virtually naked when competing, in skin tight and wet swimwear; sexual tension is virtually handed to a playwright on a plate.

First red flag: all female characters, a lesbian love, written and directed by a man. I wasn’t sure how to feel about this. I was suspicious as to how a man can enter a female mind and a female sexuality. This is not to say that men can’t tell a lesbian love story or have female characters; it has been done before. But, as the play began, I started to question the background story.

How long had these characters been seeing each other? How intimate were they? How old are they? Do they go to school or university?

Does Tabitha also live at home with her parents?

All these questions, plus a lack of any real touching moment between the two lovers, failed to make me believe in their love. Even a hot club dancing scene left me unsatisfied, with hands on bodies in only all the acceptable places. I’m not even confident that the two ever kissed on stage; the staging when they were dancing was in a way that I couldn’t see their faces or proximity.

Second red flag: I got very lost in the play, and not in the wanderlust kind of way. I’m not even sure there was a storyline. The two lovers wanted to get away from it all — pretty vague — and the mother obviously hindered them from doing so. There is something about an accident in

Theatre

the mother’s past that made her unable to swim again but I’m unsure where it occurs in their timeline. Does the mother have a dark secret? I’m not sure. Is the mother genuinely unstable? The play certainly hinted at her being so. And, without giving anything away, I really did not appreciate the ending.

Third red flag: the acting. All the actors are talented, however I’m not sure if they hit the right beats with their monologues and tone of voice. The only actor I could follow consistently was Mcluskie. McCardle’s Anna seemed perpetually angry, which made the tender moments with the mother rather odd.

Her consistent harsh tone made me tune out very fast. Dolinina reached some very human moments, but they were too brief for me.

Plus, it really frustrates me when actors are talking to the audience but NOT LOOKING AT ANYONE. Be brave and include the audience when talking to them! It makes everything far more interesting and engaging.

As visually interesting as the swimming moments within the show were, I really could have done without the actors creating a “swoosh” noise with each stroke. The visual image of the actors walking around the set was pleasing but they lacked purpose. But I think I’m most disappointed at the lack of swimming jargon. Swimming was not essential to the plot or themes and could have been replaced with literally any other sport.

Redeeming factors were that the show was fast-paced (one hour), and the set and lighting were incredible. Plastic lino floor treatment made a kind of “splash” sound as the actors walked, and the lighting was strong, sharp, and purposeful: I only wish the play was as well.

— Emilie Hope

Music

54

MUSIC Can of Worms!

As it is for many, music has always been a place in my life where I can find depth and feeling.

And when these experiences are shared with others, it makes them all the more meaningful.

I started studying music five years ago because I wanted to find out how music can move us in the way that it does. After all this time, I find it usually comes back to the experience of identity and belonging among people. I’m lucky to be friends with so many talented artists that have helped be apart of who I am, and I want to share them to the world.

Which is why I’m so excited about the release of Can of Worms! — a compilation tape featuring a collection of songs from a bunch of different musical projects. This thing is a collaboration between some great friends and talented artists that I’ve been lucky enough to befriend. Big tunes and buzzy art. 18 tracks, two posters, and a whole load of cassettes. It is lens into some of the musicians bursting at the seams in creative scenes throughout the country (and the internet).

The proceeds go towards supporting fieldwork expenses for my Master’s, where I’m looking into hip-hop as a tool of expression for Japanese youth. Hip-hop culture worldwide has grown to become a voice for so many and Japanese hip-hop is now its own bonafide musical style and subculture. My work focuses on how hip-hop creates voices of dialogue for people the world over and draws attention to some of the talented underground MCs that often don’t want to compete in the commercial industry, but still want to be recognised for their talent.

Can of Worms! incorporates a mix of electronic, eclectic, and enormous tunes — fuzzy guitar melodies from the likes of Hans Pucket, Casseus Nebula, C R Barlow, and Mr. Amish; galactic trap from Bill Heavens; jangly guitar from Str8breetha; hip-hop hitters from Stevie Franchise and Pope Flamez; ambient warmth from Swampman; sound art pieces from

George Nelson and Marcus Jackson as well as many others. These creatives are producing content in all walks of life. One is currently making a book to sell in Tokyo, another is linking up with homies in the US he met via Twitter.

Most of the talent on this record comes from musicians who have spent their time as bedroom producers, meticulously honing their craft, finding their sound.

The artwork for the cassette tape features alternate covers from Louie Jackson and Stevie Franchise. Denzel De Ruyusscher made a poster of the hazy scenes of Tokyo, and Louie cartoonified the Can of Worms! name.

There’s so much great music to discover out there if you look hard enough. But this a good place to start. Please consider buying this thing so I can get back to studying!

The compilation is available from canofwormscompilation.bandcamp.com for as little as a Vic Books coffee. Use the code “salientmag” for a 20% discount.

Support ya locals, #getwittytojapan.

— Andrew Witty

— Alex Feinson

55

Help… They’re all dead…

This is the haunting sentence from the 111 call made by David Bain on the morning of June 20, 1994, and is the opening line to each episode of the new ten-part Stuff and Tandem Studios podcast series, Black Hands: A Family Mass Murder.

Written and narrated by journalist Martin van Beynen, Black Hands is an in-depth analysis of the Bain family murder case that has divided the nation for over two decades, and once again tries to answer the ultimate question — who did it?

The series is broken up into two parts. The first five episodes discuss the events that lead up to the crime and provide a look into the Bain family’s life; the final five episodes discuss the scientific and circumstantial evidence of the case.

One of the strengths of the series is its high production value, as the narration is broken up with sound-bites taken from police interrogations, witness interviews, news clips, and testimony from the two trials that round out van Beynen’s solo-narration.

Another strength is that van Beynen remains relatively neutral throughout the series, and looks into how the evidence points to David as the killer, but also how it can point to Robin. He only reveals his own opinion in the final episode, which makes you want to listen all the way through.

The most interesting and compelling episodes are #5 “Incest, Blackmail, Murder”, and #8 “The Suicide Puzzle”, as van Beynen delves deep into the incest and suicide theories that make the case so fascinating.

I’m not normally a fan of narrative-style podcasts, but the series is absolutely engrossing and addictive.

The level of research is an impressive feat, and van Beynen’s passion to find out the truth is apparent.

You finish an episode feeling confused about what you thought you believed, but being unable to resist listening to the next one to hear what happens next.

This podcast series is not just for those interested in true crime (hey fellow murderinos!), but all New Zealanders curious about this enthralling and tragic moment of New Zealand’s history.

GIG GUIDE

PODCAST Black Hands: A Family Mass Murder

Guides Food

55 Thursday: Church of Goya / Beatcomber / Damn Dans — Slip on down to Moon this Thursday for a heavenly infusion 55of post-punk, surf rock, and pop jams. Doors at 7.00pm, $10.

Friday: Unholy jam space show — An absolute stellar lineup of Pam, Girlboss, Dodge Viper, and Happily Headless makes this $5 steal of a show an absolute Friday night must. Get on down to 305a Mansfield St from 6.00pm for a jolly good loving stroke for your earholes.

Friday: Alexa Casino Release PARTY — Party is all in caps for a reason, come along and see Alexa Casino perform new music feat. Womb and cool DJs at Caroline from 8.00pm, $10.

Saturday: For the Maui — A delightfully wholesome all-ages daytime gig for the benefit of our endangered brethren the Maui dolphin, with a sinfully good lineup including queen of mellow doof k2k, ambient goddess Ludus, FCKCPS, Rifts, and many more. Entry is by donation and prints are available to buy from various artists on the day so crack open your piggy bank, my sweets!

At Raglan Roast from 3.00pm. Sunday: Black Sheep Animal Sanctuary Fundraiser — Yet another daytime event for a wonderful cause, this time the upkeep of over 200 rescued sweet animal babies. With the greatest concoction of activities known to womankind — cheap booze, vegan food, vintage clothes, tattoo flash, facepainting, AND tunes from Unsanitary Napkin, TVX, Pantihero and Corpse Rat — you’d be an absolute melon to miss this one.

It’s going down at Newtown Workingmen’s Bowling Club, 2.00–9.00pm.

55

56

Television

TELEVISION Celebrity Big Brother, Season 20

Remember Big Brother? That Australian show from the mid-2000s with people in a house full of cameras, competing in random tasks, and trying to outlast eviction ceremonies to win a cash prize? That guy from Neighbours was on it once, and there was that girl who wore pajamas and danced in rabbit ears, and there was also an “after dark” edition that you’d sneak watch at 11:30pm where they’d show unaired footage of everyone jerking off in the showers?

Big Brother is still alive and well in the UK, regularly throwing strangers in a house so they will get drunk and fight for our entertainment, but the real gem of the franchise is its celebrity edition; people still get drunk and fight in a house, but they are all simultaneously extremely narcissistic and deeply embarrassed to have reached this point in their careers. Each season beautifully manages to capture the vibe of when your parents told you to “stop showing off ” when people were over at your house, but everyone showing off is an adult, and I live for it.

The word “celebrity” should always be taken with a grain of salt when it comes to CBB — I think the most famous people to have ever been on it would be David Gest (know for being Elizabeth Taylor’s ex) and Gary Busey (known for being batshit). Daniel Baldwin was on once, but he is definitively the least known of the Baldwin brothers (I consider myself an expert). Personally I’ve never found the lack of recognition to matter, and I often get very attached to people from Eastenders, a show I have never seen.

This season has the usual mix of reality stars, washed-up singers and soap opera actors from the UK and America — with the added joy of YouTube superstar Trisha Paytas, who is maybe the only YouTuber I know and that makes me feel young and validated. Trisha is known for talking very fast, crying on her kitchen floor, mukbang shows (Korean for “eating broadcast”), and dating D-list actors from ’80s films — imagine her dismay when this season’s

cast does not at all meet her standards. The 15 housemates include The Bachelor’s Chad Johnson (who?), pop group Girls Aloud’s Sarah Harding (whom?), and Celebrity Love Island’s Paul Danan (whomst’d’ve?). There is a television psychic, Derek Acorah, who has been asked about ghosts every single day; in case you were wondering, his spirit guide is called Sam, and yes, he can see into the future.

Though nothing can ever top Tiffany “New York” Pollard’s reaction to what she thought was a fellow housemate’s sudden death (I cannot go into more detail without sabotaging my word limit, but I implore you to search YouTube for “David’s dead”), the promise of Trisha gives me great hope for the coming few weeks. She has already had iconic moments, purposefully sabotaging her chance at immunity for pizza, and crying because she has not been provided a washcloth with which to scrub her own ass.

The best thing about CBB is that it is so frequent, airing at least once every day in the form of the main highlights show, often followed by an hour long livestream from the house. There are bi-weekly live evictions — as voted by the public — that also function as that day’s highlights show and can sometimes go for up to two hours.

And then, every weekday, there is Big Brother’s Bit on the Side, a talk show discussing the day’s events hosted by former contestant Rylan Clark.

In other words, it is the perfect show for you.

Yes, you, smoking your third spliff of the day, eating yesterday’s Hell’s pizza. Embrace the trash, for you are already in the bin.

— Katie Meadows

Games

57

GAMES Splatoon 2 Developer: Nintendo EPD Publisher: Nintendo Platform: Nintendo Switch

I’ve complained a lot about Nintendo in the past, to the point where some of you are probably getting sick of it. Nintendo’s weird inclination to do the exact opposite of what is expected of a gaming company turns the simplest of tasks into a frustrating mess, making one wonder why you should even bother putting up with their crap. Then you actually plays a Nintendo game for a while, and realise — Nintendo still know how to make their games fun.

Splatoon, one of the Big N’s few online multiplayer-focused franchises, is no exception on both fronts. The original game, while not at all bad, had the misfortune of being on the Wii U; though, by all accounts, it ended up being one of the few reasons to get one. Its sequel is likely going to be everyone’s first opportunity to try multiplayer shooting, Nintendo-style. While it is much better poised to succeed thanks to the Switch’s high sales (except, it seems, here in NZ), there are several technical issues which may well put players off, new and experienced alike.

The core gameplay is essentially what you would expect a multiplayer shooter by Nintendo to be like: colourful, wacky, and very kid-friendly.

Rather than focusing on eliminating other players, as an Inkling your objective is to cover the map in as much coloured ink as possible, changing between humanoid and squid forms to get around and using a great variety of guns, buckets, and brushes to mark your team’s territory. Matches are short, usually around five minutes, but a ton of bonkers action is packed into them, making for an addictive experience.

With ranked mode and special “league battles” available, there are plenty of opportunities to keep coming back and testing your skills.

The game’s campaign isn’t really anything to write home about, though it does translate the main mechanics into a single player experience relatively well, complete with some really good boss battles. In addition, a co-op mode called Salmon Run is available, and it may well be the best part of the entire

Splatoon 2 experience; taking down waves of crazy Salmonids and filling your quota of golden eggs for Grizzco is just as addictive as a standard match, maybe even more so.

While the actual game might be a solid foundation, the infrastructure supporting it is so poorly designed it could only come from a company that simply doesn’t get how online multiplayer should be done. Splatoon 2 uses peer-to-peer connections for matchmaking, making lag a real possibility if you have a less-than-decent internet connection, not to mention the potential for cheating. No online game should still be using peer-to-peer in 2017, yet Nintendo insists. Multiplayer matchups are also subject to scheduling, where only certain maps and modes are available for a given amount of time — criminally, this includes Salmon Run, which can disappear for hours at a time.

But that’s nothing compared to setting up a lobby to play with friends, accomplished using the new Nintendo Switch Online smartphone app. Yes, a separate app on a separate device is needed for functionality that is built into literally every other console! It gets downright laughable if you want to use voice chat; you need a splitter (sold separately) that connects to your phone, the Switch, and your headset. Fucking really?!

Yet, despite all of this, Nintendo wants Splatoon 2 to become an e-sport. Believe me, with this kind of set-up, that won’t happen in a million years.

If you can look past all of the arbitrary crap thrown your way, Splatoon 2 is still a unique shooter experience that is just so much dang fun. It doesn’t matter if you’re a kid or a squid, because things will get messy.

— Cameron Gray

58

Columns

59

Columns

Wendelien Bakker, Diva Blair, Jesse Bowling, Teghan Burt, Quishile Charan, Sam Clague, Hikalu Clarke, Claudia Dunes & Rainer Weston, Fresh and Fruity, William Linscott, Isabella Loudon, Theo Macdonald, Annie Mackenzie & Dave Marshall, Ammon Ngakuru, Christina Pataialii, Maddy Plimmer, Deborah Rundle, Christopher Ulutupu, Tim Wagg, Daegan Wells, Aliyah Winter, Xun Cao, Yllwbro Xun Cao, Dickhead Series, 2016, inkjet print, courtesy of the artist

THE TOMORROW PEOPLE 22.7.17–1.10.17

Adam Art Gallery Te Pātaka Toi – your gallery on Kelburn campus

FREE ENTRY Tuesday–Sunday, 11am–5pm The gallery is located beside the Student Union building on Kelburn campus adamartgallery.org.nz

60

If you don’t want to write for us — write to us! Salient welcomes, encourages, and thrives on public debate. Send us your honest feedback, be it praise or polemics.

Please read both of these letters, they are very important responses to “Sex Work and Self-Care” A response to those who would silence us: Why do people hate sex workers so much?

It honestly feels like we can’t do anything right…

You don’t respect what we do for a job. Heck, some of you don’t even consider it a real job, despite it being one of the oldest professions, if not the oldest.

The majority of us are seen merely as objects, giving you the right to do whatever you want to our bodies. You consider your payment justification enough to overstep the boundaries of what was agreed about before transaction.

This even extends to the realms of physical abuse, and in some instances murder.

In my opinion there is a difference between sex work and the sex trade. The decriminalisation of prostitution in Aotearoa helps combat the sex trade, while giving rights and helping ensure a standard of safety is met. There is a place of privilege for some within the industry, like myself. I can admit this. I have been hyper-sexual from a very early age. I do not confine myself to monogamy, as I enjoy the variety of experiences that different partners offer me. I chose to do sex work for this reason. And I do not regret this decision. Women like myself, who work in the industry because we enjoy what we do, are important and valid. I would never wish someone into this line of work if they felt it was their only option. I acknowledge and understand that there are those still entering the profession as a last resort. But at some point you have to recognise that this is not the fault of other sex workers.

This is a societal repercussion often linked to poverty, or a result of sexual abuse. Again this is not the fault of any sex worker — those who have experienced these acts of violence or those who haven’t. At what point does us writing honest articles about our experiences within our jobs constitute grooming?

I understand you may not agree with our work, nor is it the type of work you would ever

LETTERS

consider doing. But please refrain from putting us in this category you have thought up for us, one that insinuates that we should feel shame for what we do. Women can be sexual beings, women can choose to do what they want with their bodies.

It’s 2017, sex work is legal in our country.

While it’s still not the ideal circumstances, it sure as hell has improved and is becoming safer for sex workers. There is a market for sex work; let those of us who want to do it, do it! Let us speak about our experiences. Stop shaming us, stop silencing us.

Kindest regards, A sex worker who loves what she does.

Hey Salient, I know this is a bit late but I’m writing to you about your student sex worker article in issue 15.

Before I begin, I want to acknowledge the author: writing about sex work publicly is hard, and it opens you up to a lot of different kinds of criticism. It’s especially hard, as Min notes, when you’re not willing to play the part of “repentant whore” and instead have a more complicated story to tell, and I respect them for sharing their story; narratives of empowerment can be useful to break the stigma we face. I was a hooker for the best part of the last seven years, and I know how hard it can be to talk about it publicly.

But there’s a problem with articles like this (or indeed many other “student sex worker”articles): they can end up reinforcing the idea that some sex workers are more acceptable than others.

When we write about how we don’t conform to stereotypes, it sets us up in opposition to sex workers who do — and can end up implying that they (we) do deserve the stigma. Sex workers who are single mothers, who never finished secondary school, who have a fraught relationship with the job, who use drugs, who’re

61

LETTERS doing the job because they feel it’s their best or only option, who’ve dropped out of university multiple times, who resent their clients, who find sex tedious at best, who don’t have exit plans, who work 40 hours a week in high volume brothels and don’t have the option to just take the day off without facing illegal fines, who struggle to pay our bills, who do this job for years, who are street-based workers, who don’t feel empowered by the work: we all deserve respect too.

Breaking the taboo around sex work is important — it makes it easier for us to do our work safely, it makes it easier for us to stand up for our rights as workers — but it’s important to be mindful that we aren’t reinforcing prejudices against more marginalised workers in our community.

Thank you mysterious person Hi Salient, As a non-binary person it heartens me to see the improved levels of representation in this years editions of Salient— not just for NB people, but all over the spectrum. Keep up the good work!

Yours, An individual of mysterious and indistinct gender

Thanks!

Letters must be received before 5pm on Tuesday for publication the following week. They must be 200 words or less. Pseudonyms are fine but all letters must include your real name, address, and telephone number — these will not be printed. Letters will not be corrected for spelling or grammar. However the Editors reserve the right to edit, abridge, or decline any letter without explanation.

Email: editor@salient.org.nz with “Letter to the Editor” in the subject line.

Post: Salient c/- Victoria University of Wellington Hand-delivered: Salient office, Level 3, Student Union Building (behind the Hunter Lounge).

NOTICES VICTORIA ABROAD — STUDENT EXCHANGE OPPORTUNITIES

Why wait to go overseas after finishing your degree? GO ON EXCHANGE! Study in English, earn Victoria credit, get StudyLink and grants, explore the world!

Find out more on our website: http://victoria.ac.nz/exchange Enjoy past students’ experiences and photos on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ VictoriaAbroadNZ/ Information Sessions: Every Wednesday at 12.50pm, Level 2, Easterfield Building

PARTICIPANTS NEEDED FOR A READING STUDY

If you are an undergraduate student and your native language is English or Chinese, you are invited to take part in our reading study. Participants will receive $50 in supermarket vouchers.

What’s involved? Two sessions — about two hours each (on consecutive days) and a third session of one hour (after two weeks).

The sessions are held on Kelburn Campus.

Please email Natalia.Beliaeva@vuw.ac.nz

A listing in our notices section is free for all VUW students, VUWSA-affiliated clubs, and not-for-profit organisations. If you would like to post a notice please email editor@salient.org.nz and include NOTICE in the subject line. There is limited space in this section so notices will be prioritised at the discretion of the editors.

62

ACROSS

SUDOKU

DOWN

Sudoku difficulty: Hard

CROSSWORD: ‘RISKY BUSINESS'

TARGET

Make as many words of three letters or more as you can. Each word must contain the letter in the central square.

‘THIS PARTY IS DEAD'

LAST WEEK'S SOLUTION

Target goals: Good: 13 words Great: 15 words Impressive: 18 words

Puzzles

1. With 27-Across, it might be listed on your CV with a phone number (9,9) 5. Springfield Isotopes’ logo (4) 9. State where the excellent show ‘Gravity Falls’ is set (6) 10. Place for a cradle in a nursery rhyme (7) 11. Barrier that might stop access to a construction site (5-4,5) 14. He played Tywin Lannister on ‘Game of Thrones’ (7,5) 19. Incredibly low likelihoods... or a hint to the answers at 1-, 11-, 14-, and 27-Across (7,7) 24. Libyan capital with Martyrs’ Square (7) 25. Country whose Volcanoes National Park is mostly bamboo growth (6) 26. Feature of an oboe or clarinet (4) 27. See 1-Across 1. Option (6) 2. Place for rock concerts or gladiator matches (5) 3. Famed feature of Suez or Panama (5) 4. ‘Bennie and the Jets’ singer John (5) 6. 1997 film with the famous line “I'll never let go,” upon which the speaker immediately lets go (7) 7. With 8-Down, Canadian symbol (5,4) 8. See 7-Down 12. “I am neither overwhelmed ___ underwhelmed” (3) 13. Baby goat or less-baby human (3) 15. ‘_____ Bling’ (Drake single that syncs up suspiciously well with the MarioKart theme (7) 16. Went first (3) 17. ‘Selma’ director DuVernay (3) 18. Actual title of ‘The Pina Colada Song’ (6) 19. Furry sea creature that holds hands with its friends while they sleep (aww!) (5) 20. Recycle bin or file folder, maybe (4) 21. Dedicatee of a Beethoven piano piece (5) 22. Bojack or Seabiscuit, say (5) 23. First name of talk-show host O’Brien or barbarian The Barbarian (5) 25. “Ah, mon ___!” (5)

63

HOROSCOPE

Horoscope

We hope our readers are absolutely hooning all the Astrological energy that Leo is offering this month, and taking time to think about how they will best exercise their democratic right to vote in the upcoming September 23 election.

— Aubergine and Celeste Leo: Jul 23–Aug 22 You are on the astrological equivalent of pingers this month, our friends. Your life is about to C-H-A-N-G-E and you’re not even that worried about it because you know you’ve got this, you confident bastard.

Virgo: Aug 23–Sep 22 The sun is wandering through your 12th house of rest and comfortable change (maybe that’s why you’re nearly over that embarrassing crush?). It’s a boring month for you, but don’t worry it’s your sign’s season soon so then you can have fun and everyone has to pay you attention.

Libra: Sep 23–Oct 22 Revel in the public eye you beautiful social butterfly!

Spread your wings and soar on the ~powerful~ energy of last Monday’s lunar eclipse. The universe might reward you if you put yourself out there, and by that we mean place a few charming hotties in your way ;) Scorpio: Oct 23–Nov 21 Social Mercury, the messenger planet, will be retreating through Virgo and your communal eleventh house until the 31st. Don’t be surprised if an old friend or two make an appearance! This is a good time for you to cut out any shady characters from your life, and we know how much you love burning bridges Scorpio.

Sagittarius: Nov 22–Dec 21 Mercury’s three-week retrograde through Virgo and your tenth house of career makes it an optimal time to tweak your yo-pro image. It might pay to double check the recipients of work emails before you smash that send button, just in case you’ve accidentally hit reply all. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Capricorn: Dec 22–Jan 19 Last week’s lunar eclipse will give you the energy you need to leave your less-than-ideal working conditions behind. If you’ve got some savings, use your newfound free time (unemployment) to visit somewhere close to home, or, you know, go visit your parents.

Aquarius: Jan 20–Feb 18 We hope you’re riding on the wave of that incredible lunar eclipse in your sign last Monday! Wowee.

Any plans you made prior to last week will be supercharged now; get ready for some serious self growth. With Mercury in retrograde watch out for sneaky exes popping up.

Pisces: Feb 19–Mar 20 Speaking of exes, Pisces, don’t be surprised if past lovers reappear between now and September 5.

Mercury is backtracking through Virgo and your seventh house of relationships and will have you craving closure. You must resist! Don’t sit around wondering why Chad ghosted you. That’s just what Chads do.

Aries: Mar 21–Apr 19 With the Sun in Leo (your passionate fifth house) and energetic Mars, get ready for some boisterous lovemaking. While the Sun/Mars combo makes for good boning, your energetic yet annoying personality can test some of your closest friendships.

Taurus: Apr 20–May 20 This week is just one long #tbt as the Sun visits Leo and shines the light on your fourth house of emotions, family, and connection. Instagram a sepia-toned photograph of you and the family outside your old family home. We know you want to.

Gemini: May 21–Jun 20 The stars are supporting you as you channel the energy of the Planets and become charismatic af this week.

BUT Pluto (and your natural personality) is making you a little erratic about it, so just check yourself before ya wreck yourself okay.

Cancer: Jun 21–Jul 22 OH NO, this month is all about exposing true emotions, something that your sign is not the ~best~ at. But channel this inner energy and confess the crush/join the slam poetry club/put your hand up in a tutorial because we have so much faith in you.

Notes:

***