Maories sexims

The Maoríes are descendants of warrior aborigines, and are the real owners of these lands. Of indigenous facial features and brown skin, robust for nature, resistant and strong, as their warrior roots indicate it. This difference make that they speak and walk different than the New Zealanders. Probably they were players or ex-players of rugby at some time in their life, because they are named the group of the strongest men of New Zealand, and not only for their physical aspect and personality, but also for the way they give more value to the man than to the woman. The Maoríes venerate the man for being the ones who gives the orders in the family, whereas the woman is the one who has to obey him, remaining quiet and taking little part in the custom of their culture.

An example where this Maorí sexism appears, is in the movie “Whale Rider”. In this film we can perceive the difference between being born as a man or a woman inside this community, and how this factor determines the future life of many people.

The movie talks about agreeing or rejecting the cultural changes  the society faces nowadays, showing a grandfather that remains anchored in his ancient beliefs, and his granddaughter, who from her birth was raise by him and his wife in response of the death of the girl’s mother, and the decision of her father in travel abroad to forget his pain, the grandfather, being the Chief of the village, does not want to recognize her as the heiress of the tradition just because she is not a man.

Other prominent characters are the ones who show their own features. For example; a grandmother who understands maleness, but does not accept it in her believes; adults moving away increasingly from his traditions when adopting other customs, and teenagers who just think of going away of the village without taking the sentimental weight. With everything against the tradition, there arises an unexpected interest in this girl named Paikea in keeping their customs and learn how to recover the harmony of the village.

Sadly for Paikea, she is despised by her gender, being not recognized as the natural inheritor to lead her people. Moreover, her grandfather thinks she is the reason ofr all the problems of his tribe since the moment of her birth.

Meanwhile, the grandfather creates a school in order to look for the inheritor, but among ancient chants, tribal rites,  and the warrior techniques, the future leader will be reveal, demonstrating to her village that she is the legitimate inheritor as a whale rider. The scene in the minute 36, shows the maleness in the grandfather where he says to Paikea "you sit behind, because you are a girl" and Pai defies him by having a sit in front of him, and as a result, the man ends expelling her from the ceremony.