Malak Tamimi, of Queen’s High School, won two awards at the annual Race Unity Speech Awards held in Auckland last weekend.
Her speech included insights from her grandfather, who had recently died, and other role models in her life.
Malak said she fought nerves at regional heats and national semifinals, ‘‘but when I stepped up to the final stage, my heart was regulated’’.
‘‘I was calm and I felt the strength in a different way that I’d never had before.
‘‘I feel like that does come from my tūpuna [ancestors], from the strength that I know that my mokopuna [descendants] will have in the future as well.’’
This year’s speech topic was ‘‘listening to understand — whakarongo kia mārama’’.
Malak said she reflected on her intersectional identity as she developed her speech.
‘‘I am Palestinian and I’m also Muslim and I wear a hijab,’’ she said.
‘‘I do have quite a unique perspective in Aotearoa on race unity and how people are exposed to racism in different ways — not always loud, but often quiet, normalised and ignored.’’
‘‘I wanted to tie together the indigenous perspectives and the significance of land and how when you listen to people, you don’t just listen to assumptions or stories or headlines, you have to listen to them fully.
‘‘Every word that I’ve woven into my speech, with aroha, with care, with all my soul — I wanted those words to impact people just like they’ve impacted me.’’
She won the Tohu Eke Panuku — Human Rights Commission Award for Impact and the Tohu Manukura i Te Reo — Māori Language Commission Award for te Reo Māori, which was a ‘‘pleasant surprise’’.
Malak said her use of of te reo Māori was not an intentional choice, but had simply ‘‘flowed’’ best in her speech.
‘‘[The award] showed me that I am playing my little part in the world to reindigenise Aotearoa and to make people feel listened to.’’
The 21 national semi-finalists also attended a race unity hui in Auckland.
Beyond her awards, the event provided a sense of community between ‘‘different people doing different work on the same kaupapa’’, Malak said.
