Let's be TRANSparent

It's All About Perspective


Listen Later

While gender is finally no longer seen as a binary choice in western societies, Pacific cultures have understood this for hundreds of years. Joe finds out what it means to be Takatāpui and fakafifine.

New Zealand is a diverse country with our communities made up from people of all cultural backgrounds.

Sometimes we just assume certain things translate perfectly across cultural boundaries, but often things get lost in translation.

While gender is finally no longer seen as a binary choice in western societies, Pacific cultures have understood this for hundreds of years. However in more recent times some of this understanding and cultural embrace has been forgotten.

There is a lot of work going into supporting whānau, families and communities who are supporting their young persons on their gender journey by embracing and reforming these cultural connections.

Phylesha Brown-Acton, MNZM, founded F'ine Pasifika to help families navigate their way through the gender identity journey their young people are on. From weaving to photo speak, she uses tools that are designed specifically to connect with her communities.

"Being open but also expressing to one another is a process and a journey that we are all on and we need to talk through it," said Phylesha.

"For a lot of indigenous people is something that's sort of like the seventh thing about us," she said, "It is not, and has never been about being binary. Women do masculine roles, men to feminine roles within different Pacific cultures."

Like Pasifika cultures, Māori also view a persons identity with much more plurality than that of western culture. The term 'takatāpui' connects a persons Māori identity with their queer identity.

"Takatāpui means to encompass all those identities as one" said Neihana Gordon Stables, a homelessness support worker at Rainbow Youth, "It's to be trans, it's to be bi, it's to be Māori, it's to be all those things at once."

Unfortunately, families aren't always so accepting of their young person exploring their gender identity, as Neihana knows all too well. He was kicked out of home at 16. He now has a very good relationship with his mother and uses his personal experiences in his work with young people and their families who find themselves in similar situations.

Neihana has seen first hand how providing support for parents and whānau is just as important as supporting the young person who is transitioning.

"[Parents] feel so isolated, they are not talking to anybody else," said Neihana, "You deserve to talk about it and you deserve support as well, along side supporting your young person."…

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

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Let's be TRANSparentBy RNZ

  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7
  • 4.7

4.7

15 ratings


More shows like Let's be TRANSparent

View all
Fresh Air by NPR

Fresh Air

37,904 Listeners

Here Now by RNZ

Here Now

1 Listeners

How to Be a Girl by Marlo Mack

How to Be a Girl

1,094 Listeners

FROM ZERO by RNZ

FROM ZERO

1 Listeners

The Science Of… by RNZ

The Science Of…

1 Listeners

Go Ahead Caller by RNZ

Go Ahead Caller

3 Listeners

Pod Save America by Crooked Media

Pod Save America

86,250 Listeners

The Daily by The New York Times

The Daily

112,729 Listeners

Voice of the Iceberg by RNZ

Voice of the Iceberg

27 Listeners

Fathom by RNZ

Fathom

8 Listeners

Shameless Sex by Amy Baldwin and April Lampert| Pleasure Podcasts

Shameless Sex

2,967 Listeners

Slice of Heaven by RNZ

Slice of Heaven

1 Listeners

The Lost by RNZ

The Lost

40 Listeners

Pants on Fire by RNZ

Pants on Fire

102 Listeners

The ReidOut with Joy Reid by Joy Reid,  MSNBC

The ReidOut with Joy Reid

3,374 Listeners

Gender Reveal by Tuck Woodstock

Gender Reveal

1,232 Listeners

Outward: Slate's LGBTQ podcast by Slate Podcasts

Outward: Slate's LGBTQ podcast

205 Listeners

The Worst Sitcom Ever Made by RNZ

The Worst Sitcom Ever Made

7 Listeners

Best of Storytime by RNZ

Best of Storytime

2 Listeners

The Citizen's Handbook by RNZ

The Citizen's Handbook

3 Listeners

After the Virus by RNZ

After the Virus

0 Listeners

Conspirituality by Derek Beres, Matthew Remski, Julian Walker

Conspirituality

1,933 Listeners

The Service by RNZ

The Service

30 Listeners

TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones by TransLash Media

TransLash Podcast with Imara Jones

558 Listeners

Maintenance Phase by Aubrey Gordon & Michael Hobbes

Maintenance Phase

16,100 Listeners

Gender: A Wider Lens by Sasha Ayad and Stella O'Malley

Gender: A Wider Lens

755 Listeners

The Laverne Cox Show by Shondaland Audio and iHeartPodcasts

The Laverne Cox Show

734 Listeners

Short Story Stack by RNZ

Short Story Stack

0 Listeners

We Can Do Hard Things by Glennon Doyle and Audacy

We Can Do Hard Things

41,033 Listeners

Fight for the Wild by RNZ

Fight for the Wild

3 Listeners

the Transgenda by Ana and Cam

the Transgenda

29 Listeners

Sci Fi / Sci Fact by RNZ

Sci Fi / Sci Fact

0 Listeners

Hair and Loathing by TAHI

Hair and Loathing

0 Listeners

Deer Wars by RNZ

Deer Wars

2 Listeners

Voice of Tangaroa by RNZ

Voice of Tangaroa

0 Listeners