Left of the Equator Press

Books from Aotearoa for a world beyond capitalism and colonialism.


Kia Mau

Kia Mau: Resisting Colonial Fictions

Critical essays by Tina Ngata.

This book sets out to examine the decision by the New Zealand government to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the arrival of Captain James Cook and the implications of that decision both for Maori and for the wider global struggle against colonialism. Analysing these thinly veiled celebrations alongside the role of the Doctrine of Discovery while charting Cook’s crime spree of murder, rape and pillage, Ngata urgently calls for a practice ethical remembering that requires unlearning the falsehoods of “exploration” and “discovery” and coming to terms with the horrifying reality of ongoing colonisation.

Published January 2019. ISBN 9780473494957

"This book has refreshed me like the purest wai māori (water) in a desert. I have thought of it as a Colonisation 101 heads-up. The colonising fictions Ngata brings to our attention are that colonisation is historical, the coloniser is great, benevolent, and non-violent, colonisation was invited, opposition to colonisation is dangerous and divisive, colonisation is beneficial, colonisation is inevitable and unavoidable, colonisation is localised, the coloniser is central to our identity. In my work as a psychiatrist I see colonisation at work every day. I see the intergenerational impact of colonisation in my face. Overwhelming numbers of suicidal rangatahi Māori, whānau with serious mental illness. These are just some of the fruits of the Doctrine of Discovery in 2020. We have a saying, "Ahakoa he iti, he pounamu: although small, it is precious." An apt adage for Ngata's book. This book needs to be required reading on the school (and in particular, medical schools) curriculum, in every library and home. It is a juicy read. With plenty to ponder. Just what the doctor ordered, pun intended." - Dr Hinemoa Elder, NZ Herald

"As a Pākehā who has learned what Tina Ngata describes as colonial fictions, I found this book at once thought-provoking, enlightening, sobering, and motivating. Tina Ngata has produced an important work that deserves attention." - Serah Allison, ISO

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