The intricacies of indigenous, disabled pride

Plus: Hei kōnā mai to our very slay kaimahi Beth Awatere

Kia ora e te whānau! Today we are saying haere rā to our very 🦄 slay 🦄 kaimahi Beth Awatere as they leave for a big adventure in Europe. Beth has been a pivotal part of The D*List team with their incredible organisational skills, joyous energy and most recently, as project coordinator for our Deepen* programme. Their piece about why they dread Pride month was one of our most read and engaged pieces of content on The D*List. We wish Beth all the best!

Image description: Tania, Red, Beth, Pelenakeke and Olivia take a selfie.

This week we wanted to share another incredible visual poem as part of our Deepen* kaupapa. Pelenakeke Brown commissioned poet and taonga puoro practitioner Ruby Solly created a new poem, Risk. It explores whakapapa, the medical model for wahine Māori and their journey of trying to become a new parent. Watch it now on The D*List.

Image description: Ruby is a Māori woman with short brown hair wearing a tan-coloured dress and a pounamu around her neck. She sits in a chair in a blue and beige room. Photographer: Julie Zhu.

Risk is the second work in our series of poetry. The first part is Henrietta Bollinger’s poem Definition, which you can watch and read here.

🌙 If you’re around Tāmaki Makaurau this Saturday, come along to the Illuminate Night Market being held at Mt Albert War Memorial Hall. Hosted by Recreate, a disability youth organisation, there will be food, entertainment and market stalls run by young disabled people. Some of The D*List will also be going along, we so might see you there!

- Olivia Shivas, Editor