Last night I attended Risky Women, a beloved WORD festival favourite where four incredible women speak about the risks they’ve taken in their personal and professional lives. This is always one of the first events to sell out, which meant the Concert Hall at The Piano was packed with (mostly) women, ready to be inspired and entertained.
Anke Richter opened the evening with stories of her early life – a bold move to LA to become a journalist, travelling all around the world, then finally settling in Ōtautahi to start a new life, on the opposite side of the globe from her homeland of Germany. But her main risk-taking really started once she landed here and started her investigative work, interviewing the survivors of Centrepoint. I’ve read about this in her brilliant book Cult Trip, but somehow, it’s more powerful hearing about it in person. There’s a stillness in the room as we listen to this difficult topic. Anke poured herself into this research, but after two years of interviewing survivors of sexual abuse she had absorbed too much trauma and finishing the book she was working on became too hard. She had taken a risk and crashed – it felt like defeat. It’s humbling and important to hear that sometimes the risks we take don’t work out, at least not at the time, or not as we planned.
Eventually this work led to more opportunities – researching other high control groups, working on documentaries, writing a different book – and shaped the work she is doing today. Anke wants to change the narrative around cults and the people who fall into them, after realising that anyone (including herself) can fall for this type of manipulation. Her next big risk is the Decult Conference, the first cult awareness conference in Aoteaora New Zealand (which is happening in October at Tūranga, if anyone wants to learn more).
Anika Moa immediately made the crowd laugh by turning the tables and interviewing the host Susie Ferguson – then berating her for using up her speaking time! Although lots of jokes were made, there were some powerful messages in what she had to share as well. Anika spoke of her driving passion to be a singer and the risks she took early in her career, ditching her rugby scholarship when a record company from Auckland called. She moved to Auckland and played her first gig to an audience of 4 people, so obviously it took a bit of tenacity to stick with it and forge the career she has today. It’s a good reminder that the rewards of risk-taking often don’t pay off straight away, there’s a lot of hard work that happens too.
The other risk she spoke about was relatable to me: As a songwriter who feels deep emotions, she risks loving people because they all end up in her songs. When she sings these songs, she’s baring her heart to the world, a deeply vulnerable act. I resonated with this description of creative practice, it’s a very particular risk that entwines your personal and emotional life in a way that isn’t always recognised or understood.
Next up was Christine Jeffs, who I’ll admit that I didn’t know much about before last night. She’s a film director, which she describes as a full-on risky and uncomfortable occupation. We all had a good laugh when she showed photos from her childhood; she grew up being dragged around the hills on outdoor adventures, getting blisters in borrowed boots and occasionally getting lost. However, this gave her the fortitude to make it as a director, especially in the early days when there weren’t many women on set. She’s had the courage to make many unconventional decisions in her career, which have led to her success.
Her other big risk surprised me: Riding big horses over big jumps! She has been involved in eventing for twenty years and spoke about how this pushes her out of her comfort zone, teaching her to have faith in the journey and take things one step at the time. Christine finished her presentation by sharing with us her latest hobby: Cold water swimming in winter, for at least 20 minutes until your body feels euphorically warm. I’m not entirely convinced, but I’m in awe of her determination.
The final wāhine toa to speak was Ngāhuia te Awekōtuku (Te Arawa, Tūhoe, Ngāpuhi, Waikato), activist, academic, and exceptional storyteller. She set the scene by telling the story of where she grew up, where risk was inherent the landscape: beneath her feet were roving goddesses of fire, steam, mud and boiling water. I loved hearing this description of Rotorua and how connection to the whenua shaped who she became. She’s not afraid to speak her mind about what she believes and shared quotes from her articles on ‘Lesbianism’ which made a bold statement when they were published in the 70s.
Ngāhuia finishes the evening by reading an excerpt from her recently published memoir Hine Toa. It’s about how when she decided to drop out of law school in 1969, she did it on her own terms: by ditching the set exam questions and writing 40 pages on Te Tiriti o Waitangi and how the law school was perpetuating the biases of a racist government. It’s the perfect example of the common thread running through all of the presentations tonight: the importance of living your truth, whatever that may be.
Watch this session on demand until 29 September.
More by Risky women
Bloody Minded: War, Womanhood and Finding My Voice Susie Ferguson
Cult Trip Anke Richter
The Witch of Maketu and the Bleating Lambs Anika Moa
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