Dave Witherow’s opinion piece about te reo (ODT, 24.11.17) sparked outrage but it unintentionally achieved something, writes Lydia Anderson.
Language is not simply a part of culture, it does not describe a culture; language is the culture.
To deny it is to subjugate that culture.
Go back to the signing of the Treaty when the collected chiefs were misled, through words.
More recently, a generation of children were beaten, berated and punished at school for speaking te reo.
Which brings us to Friday morning when I sat down with a cuppa at the computer; a normal day.
Except, thanks to Dave Witherow's vitriolic column, it wasn't.
For those of you still unfamiliar with the local angler's angle, which produced a groundswell of outrage up and down the country, I'll summarise it (politely) as follows: ''I don't like hearing te reo so it shouldn't be on the radio or the telly, and the majority of New Zealand agrees with me.''
There's free speech, which of course we are all entitled to, and then there's Dave's rant which probably even had Sir Bob Jones gasping for breath.
It was not anger that overwhelmed me first, it was sadness.
I dreaded what ugliness Dave may have unleashed by stoking the fires of racism lingering beneath the surface in Aotearoa.
This hatred usually reveals itself in the internet comment sections, or in my experience, when you work for a national media company intent on changing the linguistic landscape.
For this former Radio New Zealand reporter, or ''young groveller'' as Dave would term me, his attitude was all too familiar.
But then a funny thing happened.
In the hours that followed, so many of you were quick to tell Dave exactly how you felt about hearing and speaking te reo, which possibly wasn't what he wanted to hear.
I read the many opinion pieces, damning comments by Race Relations Commissioner Dame Susan Devoy, and even ventured deep into the social-media comment sections underneath each article.
A veritable blizzard of ''snowflakes''.
While some agreed with Dave's sentiment, the majority firmly did not.
You expressed, in no uncertain terms, your love of hearing te reo spoken by our broadcasters, your intention to increase your own vocabulary, and your hopes that its usage increase.
It was a swift and brutal take-down.
His column sparked outrage but it unintentionally achieved something.
Its vehemence forced many of us to have an uncomfortable conversation with ourselves about what we hold important and what we want for the future of our country.
Sorry Dave, it appears that the majority of New Zealanders aren't worried about their tolerance being exhausted, as you suggest - only their tolerance for hate speech.
As for Dave's assumption that te reo was forced on ''hapless'' RNZ staff, it is laughable.
While any organisational change takes time for some to get used to, it was precisely the promotion of te reo that made so many reporters and presenters passionate about working for the organisation.
It was a way for those of us who wanted to speak te reo, but weren't sure where to start on a daily basis, to practise and increase our own understanding.
We were not forced to use it when signing off on our stories, it was personal preference.
Since Friday, Dave's column has produced its own, twisted #metoo movement, of sorts.
Other prominent Pakeha men of, ahem, advanced age, have loudly and proudly proclaimed their ''expert'' opinions on all things Maori with some real firecracker comments.
They would have you believe this country was built by the Kiwi battlers punching above their weight, gumboots and number eight wire.
Perhaps they should remind themselves Aotearoa's original battler wore a korowai, proudly wielded a taiaha and they used harakeke.
Opposition to te reo now is fuelled by exactly the same emotion as it was decades ago: fear.
Fear of something that challenges the safe majority, fear of anything that may threaten the homogeneous, monochromatic thread of ''Kiwi culture''.
Fear of other.
Maybe when the European settlers came here that feeling could be understood if not condoned.
Now, it is simply racism.
Let's not dress it with any of the long words and lofty psychology it has recently attracted.
You don't like te reo, you don't like ''Mowris'', you're a racist.
Just own it.
-Lydia Anderson is a former Radio New Zealand journalist based in Dunedin.
