Backlash misses point about study spaces for Maori and Pacific students
• April 27, 2024
Māori Hineahuone study space at the University of Auckland City Campus. Photo: Regina Tao
Māori and Pasifika students experienced a backlash after a recent 'misinformed' controversy about their designated study spaces says a student leader.
It was difficult for the students being misjudged, when these spaces are actually in place to help build community and bring a sense of belonging, says Alan Shaker, President of the Auckland University Student Association (AUSA).
"A lot of people who are making these [negative] comments are misinformed.
“With the recent backlash about the specific space that was in the news, it was pitched in a way that the space is shut off to every other student, but that's not the case at all.
“Any student can go there if they want to. It's not closed off, so I think a lot of it comes down to the lack of education and a lack of awareness.”
AUSA has four spaces for Māori and Pasifika students as well as for queer and women’s rights with their respective officers there too.
AUT also has similar spaces for their Māori students, with the Whānau room providing an area for students to feel comfortable in.
Nursing student Hayden Joe regularly uses the Whānau room and believes it is rewarding to have the chance to connect with people from his culture.
“You get to feel homely, [it’s] a safe space where you can actually feel comfortable venting because they’re your people and you come from the same background.
“Being in a space with your own culture really benefits your mental and emotional well-being.”
With the recent controversy Joe says the misinterpretation of Māori and Pasifika students is unnecessary.
“There's a fine line between having a study space and a designated space.
“You see with a study space you're free to come there. You can bring your friends in and you're welcome there, but you're not obligated to be there.
“With a designated space you're meant to be there, and you've been put in there based on how the public and the general perceives you.”
These Māori and Pasifika study spaces at both UOA and AUT are open to all students and for their communities to come together to celebrate their culture, not to separate them from others.
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