At its core, Stafford v Attorney-General is about reconnecting whānau and returning our people to the position we ought to have been in if the Crown had fulfilled its promise in 1845.

This powerful statement by Rōpata Taylor, Ngāti Rārua, Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Tama, Ngāti Koata, encapsulates these aspirations.

With few resources it seemed unlikely we could ever break the cycle of poverty. The departure of so many [of our people] had profound consequences for our whānau, as the connection to Te Tauihu, to one other, became tenuous.

However, although the fires dimmed, they were never fully extinguished.

Whakapapa runs deep – and what had happened to our families, to us, was a burden and responsibility we carried with us across time and space.

Now we want to rekindle the fires for all of our people that left and bring them back home to ‘make the whānau whole’.

More about Rōpata Taylor