The Government's directive to the public service to ignore race is nothing more than a dog whistle and distraction from the structural racism we need to address.
"Racism is real and carries a grave burden, pretending it doesn't exist will not make it go away," says the Green Party's spokesperson for Public Services Francisco Hernandez.
"Our public service should be set up in a way that sees all communities supported and nobody left behind. Aotearoa has historically fallen short of this standard, with Māori and Pasifika alongside other minorities consistently showing up as having poorer outcomes in health, education and too many other fields.
"The Government's moral compass has quite clearly gone missing, with Aotearoa being driven backwards and away from the inclusive and supportive society we know we all want.
"The reality is that need and race are intertwined. Failing to acknowledge the structural racism that plagues our communities will see it only get worse while needs remain unmet.
"Generations of state-sponsored racism does not just disappear, it lingers. The Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State Care is one example of how deliberate and discriminatory the state was in its treatment of tamariki. We need a targeted approach to rectify the wrongs of our past and confront the challenges of our present.
"This is nothing more than a dog whistle and a distraction from the Government's failure to address the critical issues we are facing as a country. From patients dying in overcrowded ER rooms to bus drivers being bashed in racist attacks, our public service has issues that need to be addressed and racism is quite clearly still a problem for us to face.
"We need to have a mature conversation about how we build a public service that caters for all our communities and ensures those who have been historically left behind and let down are finally empowered with the support they need.
"Our communities deserve so much better than the shallow politics and hollow policies this Government is dishing out on an almost daily basis," says Francisco Hernandez.
