March 15, 2011 | Sex & Society

Gay love nothing new for New Zealand's Maori

Many First Nation cultures developed a distaste for homosexuality only after coming into contact with Christians. Various aboriginal tribes in North America, for example, celebrated two-spirited people (gays) who embodied both male and female energy. 

On the other side of the world, the Maori tribes of New Zealand also seemed to accept their gay and lesbian kin, something many of today's Maori - affected by centuries of Western influence - have denied.

Piri Sciascia, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Maori) of Victoria University and a respected elder, spoke at the recent 2nd Asia Pacific Out Games. He explained that love and caring between people of the same sex was always a part of Maori culture. 

Kevin Haunui, who works for the Out Games, said non-Maori speakers needed to hear what Sciascia said as it turned allegations that "being homosexual is a European colonial import on its head and instead shows that the views of those who deny the reality of same-sex love and its physical expression is the actual import."

He added: "Piri was affirming the reality of takataapui (devoted partner of the same sex)," says Haunui, "and he has firmly established that our Maori history and cosmology make no judgement on who you should or shouldn't love."

Homosexuality is natural, says Maori elder [GayNZ.com]