12 months after the Christchurch terror attacks, Guled Mire chairs an NZ Festival discussion with Alison Whittaker and Nyadol Nyuon from Australia, and Anahera Gildea and Jack McDonald from Aotearoa.

Listen to Guled Mire, Alison Whittaker, Nyadol Nyuon, Anahera Gildea and Jack McDonald in this highlight from the 2020 New Zealand Festival writers' programme

This panel discussion, recorded on the eve of the first anniversary of the Christchurch Terror Attacks, explores racism in Australasia from immigrant and indigenous perspectives. The role of colonialism is a focus of the talk, which involves a number of community advocates who are seeking change in the norms and behaviour of a dominant white culture.

About the speakers

Alison Whittaker

The poet and essayist Alison Whittaker is a Gomeroi multitasker from the floodplains of Gunnedah in NSW. Between 2017-2018, she was a Fulbright scholar at Harvard Law School, where she was named the Dean's Scholar in Race, Gender and Criminal Law.

Her debut poetry collection, Lemons in the Chicken Wire, was awarded the State Library of Queensland's black&write! Indigenous Writing Fellowship in 2015, and was published by Magabala Books in 2016. Her latest book, Blakwork, was published in 2018.

Alison was the co-winner of the Overland Judith Wright Poetry Prize in 2017 for her poem, Many Girls White Linen. Most recently, she was the Australian Indigenous Poet-In-Residence for the 2018 Queensland Poetry Festival.

Anahera Gildea

Anahera Gildea (Ngāti Tukorehe) is a poet, short story writer, teacher, and essayist. Her work has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies and her first book Poroporoaki to the Lord My God: Weaving the Via Dolorosa was published by Seraph Press in 2016. She has a Masters of Creative Writing from the International Institute of Modern Letters, as well as Graduate Diplomas in Psychology and Teaching, and is currently undertaking doctoral research at Victoria University of Wellington, developing critical literary theory based on Māori intellectual traditions. She lives in Te Whanganui-a-Tara with her partner and son.

Guled Mire

Guled is a former refugee who is passionate about advancing and encouraging the social well-being, inclusion and development of New Zealand's ethnic and former refugee communities. Guled is a writer, speaker, young leader and community advocate. He is recognised as one of New Zealand's most prominent young voices advocating for a more humane, inclusive and welcoming society. He serves on the boards of a number of community organisations, and is the co-founder of Third Culture Minds. …

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details