Kia ora koutou, Greetings, Namaste, Bonjour, Shalom, Hamjambo, Hola, Nihau, Konichiwa & As-Salaam-Alaikum,

With COVID-19 announcements both here and internationally, the last few days have been difficult with substantial change for everyone across the globe. We’ve had to adjust to the way we live and work, where we go, and how we connect. Our thoughts are with those who have lost loved ones, are unwell or struggling with job losses and immense uncertainty.

It’s a time when confusion and fear can be our first calling card. But it’s also when belonging and inclusion are needed more than ever.

Through these uncertain times, let’s remember one very important fact about who we are: Our country is recognised internationally for responding to troubling times with love and cohesion. Please, let’s continue to showcase that to world.

So, let’s talk. Let’s embrace our goals of belonging and inclusion – but do so in a way that keeps us all safe and helps Aotearoa New Zealand protect its people and shores. Our larger events, such as the upcoming Christchurch Hui, will be postponed. In the interim, we’ll run our conversations online. We’d love you to join us and we’ll be in touch about this. Local conversations with individuals or smaller groups will be held in a way that makes you feel safe and comfortable.

We’re all in this together. Let’s link arms in a different way. Kia kaha.

Ngā mihi nui,
Anjum, Nona, Sara and Talie

PLEASE CHECK OUT THIS ONLINE EVENT!

Te Tiriti Based Futures: Anti-racism 2020 Te Tiriti-based Futures: Anti-racism 2020 is an online and offline 10-day event that Inclusive Aotearoa Collective Tāhono is partnering with, in which both domestic and international presenters and panels will discuss and explore Tiriti-based futures, institutional racism and anti-racism, decolonisation, and transforming our constitution. Overseas presenters will also discuss lessons for Aotearoa from their experiences with these broader issues.

Start date: 21 March 2020, Race Relations Day 2020
There is a fascinating line-up of presenters over the course of the 10 days, and it is easy to register. Just use the link below. Among the many presenters, IACT’s Anjum Rahman will be speaking:

22 March 2020, 1:30 p.m.
Anjum will be speaking in a webinar entitled: Islamophobia – Acceptable Discrimination: The use of language to side-step the consequences of racism The open-access webinars will be posted on-line, where they will become permanent resources for anti-racist activism and Tiriti education.

Please register for the webinars here.