Only connect!
Posted 5 August 2009 // Rosemary Du Plessis // No comments »
A family pyramid
What connects us to those we love? What words do we use for these connections – aroha, alofa, love, agapē, liefde, érōs, amour? How do we become lovers, welcome the arrival of babies and juggle paid work, parenting and community activities? Does gender make a difference and, if so, how? What spiritual beliefs and practices are important when we farewell those we love, and how are burial practices changing?
Over the next year Te Ara will develop a new set of entries on ‘social connections’. New material is being written on whānau/families, love, courtship, marriage, civil unions, sexuality, birthing practices, adoption, contraception, childhood, gay and lesbian lives, ageing, funerals and inheritance. Entries on Māori love stories, Mills & Boon romances, dance floor courtship, and internet dating will be found alongside information about state regulation of marriage/civil unions, separation and divorce.
New migrant family
People connect not only as lovers, parents and children, but also as Māori and Pākehā, Samoan and Chinese, Catholic and Protestant, Morman and Buddhist. Aotearoa New Zealand is a place where for hundreds of years tangata whenua have been interacting with waves of new settlers. Te Ara will look at connections between Māori and non-Māori, between established settlers and newcomers, and how refugees and recent migrants build new community organisations. Racism and attempts to establish connections across difference will also feature in the social connections theme.
Relationships with others make us what we are as individuals and as a nation, but they can also be painful and damaging. So there will also be entries on family violence, the neglect and abuse of children, and crimes such as aggravated robbery and assault. How have voluntary organisations, churches, communities and the state responded to the challenges of abuse, neglect, poverty, disabilities, inequality and violence? What has been the response of the state? What public debate has occurred and how has it changed over time?
For many people religion/spirituality is central to their connectedness to Atua/God/Yahweh/Allah, to people, to other living things and the environment. How has religion and spirituality connected people and what tensions and conflicts have been associated with religious difference? What was the impact of missionary activity on Māori and what is the current place of Māori within established Christian churches? How do religious institutions respond to connections and differences among those in their communities? Contributors to Te Ara are currently writing entries that look at some answers to these questions.
The Claris family in 1912
Health and well-being also depend on social connections – on our relationships with family members, others in our communities and health practitioners. Te Ara will look at the interactions between providers and users of health services, at relationships among health professionals (like doctors and midwives) and new health initiatives like marae-based healthcare.
The web is a key way in which people now connect. And you can connect to Te Ara by sending us your stories about whānau/family, community organisations/clubs/societies, religious activities or health groups. Do you have photos of family events, balls and dances, church camps, public meetings, protests or community activities that we could use? Would you like to share your account of what it was like to set up a new community organisation?
Please go to http://www.mch.govt.nz/projects/web/teara/my-story.html if you have a story you would like to contribute, or join our Flickr group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/teara/ if you have images you’d like to contribute.
We are keen to receive material between 1 August 2009 and 1 March 2010.
And only connect!
