At the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival in 2009, I was lucky enough to attend a session in which Ranginui Walker, academic, historian and biographer shared the stage with his own biographer and friend Paul Spoonley.
Over the course of the hour Walker came across as an intelligent, committed man with a great deal of personal integrity. Someone who never intended to be "the voice of Māoridom" for Pākehā New Zealand but somehow ended up there (and as you can imagine this was not often a comfortable position to be in). He spoke quietly and modestly of his accomplishments while there was no doubt that the courteous and stately manner was underlaid by a steely resolve. This is often the case with people who tell difficult truths.
His contribution to our understanding of ourselves as a country cannot be overstated. His 1990 history of New Zealand from a Māori perspective, Ka whawhai tonu matou: Struggle without end (along with Michael King's The Penguin history of New Zealand) is a must read for anyone interested in how New Zealand came to be the place it is. It was a revelation to many and is a seminal work, which was later updated to address the Foreshore and Seabed debate. It is still a great and relevant read for all New Zealanders.
He wrote many other books that illuminated some aspect of the Māori experience of Aotearoa from a highly-acclaimed biography of Sir Apirana Ngata to a tribal history of his own beloved Whakatōhea iwi.
Ranginui Walker passed away yesterday at the age of 83. New Zealand has lost a great writer, thinker, and person.
Further Reading
- Mata Toa: The life and times of Ranginui Walker by Paul Spoonley
- Books by Ranginui Walker
- Ranginui Walker New Zealand Book Council profile
- Radical and inspirational, gentle and generous – an obituary for Ranginui Walker by Morgan Godfery
- Ranginui Walker, accidental activist - Blog post from the 2009 Auckland Writers and Readers Festival
Add a comment to: Ranginui Walker: Teller of truths