Hybrid identities: Māori Italians challenging racism and the Māori/Pākehā binary
Hybrid identities: Māori Italians challenging racism and the Māori/Pākehā binary
Category: Article
| Title | Hybrid identities: Māori Italians challenging racism and the Māori/Pākehā binary |
|---|---|
| Author | Adalgisa Giorgio and Carla Houkamau |
| Year | 2020 |
| Publication | Social Identities: Journal for the Study of Race, Nation and Culture, Volume 27, 2021 - Issue 1 |
| Pages | 20-43 |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis Online |
| Language | English |
| Format | Academic paper |
| Geographic reference | New Zealand |
| Time reference | The fieldwork underlying this article was conducted in 2013 |
| Online resource | Available to registered users and for purchase |
| Topic | Mix identities, Sciascia family, Descendants of Italians in New Zealand, Māori Identity, Māori-Italian Identity, Hybridity, Social Identity Theory, Interactionism, hybridity, ethnic identity, indigenous psychology, binary, racism, Māori/Pākehā binary |
Abstract:
New Zealand's indigenous Māori were colonized by the British (now referred to as Pākehā). Scant systematic investigation addresses bicultural/biracial identity for Māori who identify with ethnic groups other than Pākehā. Taking a narrative approach and applying thematic analysis, this paper explores interviews with forty-four Māori Italians, conducted in New Zealand in 2013. We show how Māori Italians negotiate the challenge of constructing positive ethnic identities in a milieu where ethnic hybridity has been defined primarily in relation to the Māori-Pākehā colonial encounter. Focusing on racism and stigma, we demonstrate that Māori Italians run a gauntlet of identity challenges shaped by socio-political contexts. Conversely, Māori Italians draw boundaries between themselves and the dominant Pākehā culture and draw from both Māori and Italian identities to buffer discrimination from Māori, Pākehā, and Italians. Our analysis reveals a multiplicity of interpretations of Māori-Italian identity not yet articulated in social psychology or New Zealand literature.
The fieldwork underlying this article was conducted in 2013 by Dr Adalgisa Giorgio, an Associate Professor at The University of Bath, originally from Italy. The article was co-authored by Dr Adalgisa Giorgio and Dr Carla Houkamau, an Associate Professor of The University of Auckland, of Ngāti Porou Kahungānu/Ngati Kere and Ngāti Porou/Te Whānau o Tuwhakairiora descent and herself a Māori-Italian (a descendant of Nicola Sciascia and Riria McGregor).
Adalgisa Giorgio was a keynote speaker at the 2019 ACIS Conference at the Victoria University of Wellington. Details about the author and her presentation can be found here.
The article Hybrid identities: Māori Italians challenging racism and the Māori/Pākehā binary is available to registered academic institutions, or for purchase by clicking here
