• Tankiedesantski [he/him]
    ·
    1 year ago

    In 1900 New Zealand was given a choice to join Australia as a state and one of the commonly cited reasons against joining was that NZers were worried that Australians were so racist that they would cause another war with the indigenous Maori people.

    Not that NZers at the time were treating Maori people with fairness and dignity, but Maori could at least vote and Australia was actively genociding the Tasmanian aboriginal people at the time so...

    Not exactly as bad as all other anglo countries.

    • huf [he/him]
      ·
      1 year ago

      there's something very funny to me about turboracists who nevertheless draw the line somewhere.

      like NZ in the above story, or like the countless very racist northerners in the ACW who certainly did not want to live next to black people or treat them as equals, but were nevertheless willing to fucking die to end slavery.

      how do you get this kind of brainworm?!

      • Tankiedesantski [he/him]
        ·
        1 year ago

        At that time NZ Settlers had just gotten out of a very destructive war with the Maori. Maori people fought exceptionally well and some historians credit them with inventing proto-trench warfare.

        The white settlers had to cry to Britain for help, and the war was so expensive the Brits basically told the settlers that they weren't getting bailed out again. In other words the KKKrakas were afraid that the dipshit Aussies would kick off round 2 with the Maori and get them all killed.

        • Commiejones [comrade/them, he/him]
          ·
          1 year ago

          So the Aussies weren't more racist. NZ settlers were just trying to keep things on the DL. Being afraid of repercussions for being racist isn't being less racist.

          NZ is like Canada. The government is systemic racism personified but they say sorry as they twist the knife.

          • Tankiedesantski [he/him]
            ·
            1 year ago

            Trying to read up on it now, but to my knowledge (which is out of date by a few years) neither Australia nor Canada have nation-wide programs which are analogous to the Treaty of Waitangi claims process which has paid out significant compensation and granted rights to indigenous peoples?

            The closest I can find is some local land back program in Tasmania (where most of the Aboriginal people were already genocided) and some vague mentions of modern treaties between the Canadian govt and First Nations groups surrounding limited rights and land back.

            Like yeah maybe the average NZ KKKraka isn't any less racist than an Australian or Canadian (debatable imo, but not falsifiable either way) but NZ seems to still be the least bad Anglo settler colony because it's still trying to do something tangible to uphold the original treaty between the Maori and the Anglos.

            Obviously it's not enough and will never be enough, especially with a historically flawed process and a new right wing govt. Least bad is still a loooong way off from good.

          • sooper_dooper_roofer [none/use name]
            ·
            edit-2
            1 year ago

            The Maoris were just better organized or something and more keen on (or able to) kicking them out than the Australian Natives were

            which makes sense given the size and corresponding disunity of Australia tribal cultures