Summarised by Centrist
An in-studio debate on Pākehā identity quickly moved beyond labels and into a clash of worldviews, with AUT academic Dr Ella Henry advancing an argument built on racial hierarchy and inherited guilt, while Don Brash called for equal citizenship and a shared national future.
Henry’s starting point was that Pākehā identity exists only because Māori allow it. “The very use of the word implies that you are accepting the gift from Māori people,” she said.
She pushed this hierarchy further by insisting that without Māori approval, non-Māori New Zealanders have no legitimate cultural standing. “Otherwise you’re just white people or Chinese people or Indian people.”
Henry then tied modern citizenship to a historical invitation. “You are here because of the treaty. You are here because we invited you here,” she said, implying that 21st century New Zealanders remain guests whose rights and identity depend on Māori consent.
Her description of colonisation was framed in absolute racial terms. “We did not need white people to find peace,” she said, adding, “It was white people that brought the diseases. It was white people that brought the fetters.”
Brash rejected racial essentialism and argued for a single national standard. He described New Zealanders as equals under the law and pushed back on the idea that identity or political authority in 2025 should depend on racial categories or inherited blame.
Read more over at The NZ Herald
Image: Expat Nomad
