Silent discontent: experiences of everyday racism in New Zealand = He amuamu nohopuku: he whakapātanga whakatoihara tangata ia rā, ia rā, ki Aotearoa

Abstract

Everyday racism is the integration of racism into daily life. It includes subtle, negative attitudes which people may confront in daily social interaction, as well as blatant and overt racism. On their own, small incidents can appear harmless or innocent and many of these practices go unnoticed because they are so routine. However these racist incidents are not just isolated events but systematic, recurrent, familiar practices that can be generalised. There is a lack of information and analysis of this more subtle type of racism in New Zealand and the cumulative impact it has on people's lives. This thesis looks at people's experiences of daily racism in New Zealand. The analysis draws on the work of Philomena Essed (1990, 1991), a Surinamese Dutch theorist who has looked at everyday racism in the Netherlands and California. The research is based on in-depth interviews with fourteen young women and men who identified with visibly non-white ethnic minority groups, including people from Māori, Pacific and Asian ethnic backgrounds. Most of these people had lived in New Zealand all their lives, although a few moved to New Zealand as young children or teenagers. Key findings from the research suggest that everyday racism is commonly experienced by people from ethnic minority groups and that it can affect every part of their lives, including education, employment, housing, experiences with the police, and social life. The research illustrates how people gain knowledge and understanding of racism, and how people interpret incidents as racism when the racism is not being expressed overtly. The thesis also looks at how people act, understand and respond to this racism within structural boundaries. The final section of the thesis includes suggestions for eliminating racism in New Zealand, based on research participants' insights and strategies.