The Politics of Toheroa Soup: A Pūkōrero About Whānau and Me

Abstract

The politics of toheroa soup is a pūkōrero (story) about the slow depletion of the toheroa, the Foreshore Resource Management act and the impacts on one west coast Northland Māori whānau. Toheroa was a main and staple food source for my whānau (family) from the time our tūpuna (ancestors) migrated to Aotearoa. I say “was” because we are no longer allowed to collect the giant surf clam without permits to do so. This paper discusses how whānau and cultural identity is shaped by the toheroa, the moana, the whenua and the legislation that influences how tamariki and rangatahi Māori experiences unfold within their whānau and hapū. To highlight these connections, I present whānau pūkōrero with the inclusion of discussion points. This paper makes a small contribution towards the special volume of Ata celebrating ten years of Waka Oranga: National Collective of Māori Psychotherapy Practitioners (NCMPP).