Māori Icons: Making Aotearoa Better for Indigenous

From political activism to artists seeking outrage, Māori people have been doing iconic shit for centuries. But sometimes their achievements and lives can slip through the cracks of public knowledge, leaving people ignorant of their hard work. The people below all worked hard to make Aotearoa a better place.  

Georgina Beyer  

November 1957 - 06 March 2023  

Iwi Affiliations: Te Āti Awa, Ngāti Mutunga, Ngāti Raukawa, and Ngāti Porou  

Georgina Beyer was a transgender actor, drag performer, and former sex worker who served as the mayor of Carterton from 1995 to 1999. From there, she joined the Labour Party and became the Parliament representative for the Wairarapa region till 2005. In doing so she made global history as the first openly transgender mayor in the world as well as the world’s first openly transgender parliament member. In these positions, Beyer spearheaded and was fiercely supportive of policies that aimed to enact and protect LGBT+ and Māori rights.  

But Beyer had to face a difficult life to get to this political position – from growing up in an unstable home environment to facing harassment and traumatic experiences as an adult. But these events were what inspired Beyer to cultivate a career in politics, as she wanted to protect others where no one had protected her. When reflecting on her past during a 2018 interview with The Spinoff, Beyer said, “Once I got out the other end, it gave me a real fire in my belly. That shouldn’t have happened to me. That shouldn’t happen to anyone without being taken seriously.”  

In 2004, Destiny Church members protested at Parliament against the Civil Union Bill. Beyers proudly marched up to the protestors saying, “I’m happy to stare them in the eye. Why do you hate people like us so much.” She shouted at them, “Your hatred is totally intolerable”. She was and is a true powerhouse of mana.  

Tāme Iti  

Born 1952  

Iwi Affiliations: Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Wairere, Ngāti Hauā, and Te Arawa  

An outspoken activist and artist, Tāme Iti is a figure who has sparked shock and conversation for years. He first made headlines in the 1970s through his involvement with the Māori activist group Ngā Tamatoa, where he fought to right injustices committed against Māori. One of Iti’s greatest concerns in his early activism work was (and still to this day is) the loss of Māori land and violations of The Treaty of Waitangi.  

His attempts to rally his iwi members and combat centuries of mistreatment contributed to police justification of the highly controversial Police Raids of 2007, and his subsequent arrest. While Iti was not found guilty on any charges besides that of firearm possession, his previous attempts to draw attention through controversial and audacious acts made him an easy target for media sensationalism.   

Iti now channels his political activism through his art, which he said in a 2016 interview was “probably the safest way” for him to express himself. He has hosted multiple exhibitions throughout Aotearoa, with his most recent contribution being his art performance at Waitangi on the day of the national holiday. There, he also gifted Waitangi a sculpture named Ngā Tamatoa for his earliest days in activism.  

Dame Te Atairangikaahu  

23 July 1931 - 15 August 2006  

Iwi Affiliations: Ngāti Mahuta, Ngāti Korokī, Ngāti Apakura, and Ngāti Maniapoto  

She was born as the princess Pikimene Korokī Mahuta, and later held the full title of Te Arikinui Queen Te Atairangikaahu Korokī Te Rata Mahuta Tāwhiao Pōtatau Te Wherowhero. Dame Te Atairangikaahu reigned as the Māori monarch for forty years. To the present day, she is still the longest reigning Māori sovereign in the history of Kīngitanga, and she is remembered fondly and with reverence.   

As the Māori Queen, Te Atairangikaahu was both community-driven as well as politically savvy on a global scale. She was known to move between the different iwis of Aotearoa with ease and was adaptive to the needs and personalities of those who met her. She frequently entertained royalty and figureheads from multiple different countries and was lauded for her skills in public speaking and representing Aotearoa as a whole.  

Throughout her reign, she was a passionate advocate for the preservation of Māori language and culture, and she was responsible for the first Treaty of Waitangi settlement. For her continued efforts to pave a better future for all of Aotearoa, Te Atairangikaahu was the first Māori woman to be made a Dame.  

Moana Jackson  

10 October 1945 - 31 March 2022  

Iwi Affiliations: Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Porou, and Rongomaiwahine  

After returning to Aotearoa from his studies in the United States, Moana Jackson put his job as a lawyer to work immediately by investigating the Department of Justice. This investigation would mark the beginning of Jackson’s lifelong campaign against the discrimination of Aotearoa’s criminal justice system and his specialisation in constitutional law. He published multiple reports that supported his claims of a need for change in Aotearoa on a foundational level and would continuously challenge the harshness of Eurocentric methods of imprisonment. Even after his passing in 2022, his work and teachings continue to be drawn upon by numerous publications.  

While Jackson was awarded an honorary doctorate from Victoria University, he refused any formal accolade offered to him by the Government. His steadfast reasoning was that he would not accept them unless the Crown were to fully accept and incorporate The Treaty of Waitangi and all that it promised Māori people.  

Tayi Tibble  

Born 1995  

Iwi Affiliations: Te Whānau ā Apanui and Ngāti Porou  

Tayi Tibble is in the early stages of her career as a poet, with her being in her 20s and having completed her master's degree in creative writing in 2017. However, she has already found a rapid degree of success with her work and has been both applauded and awarded for her publications. Her work was quickly picked up by publishers. Her first poetry collection was released just a year after her graduation. From there she has been critically acclaimed and has received widespread positive reviews overseas in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom. Just a few weeks ago on the 8th of April, The New York Times published an article that praised her work, explored her urban upbringing in Porirua, and referred to her as an ‘it girl’ and style icon.   

Through her hard-won ascension to success, Tibble is a role model for many young, aspiring Māori women. She is an icon in the making, with vast amounts of potential for all the ways she may continue to succeed in the future.