Change the Messaging ; Change the Community Outcomes.

Written by Andre Whittaker CEO WRL.

“If you wear the man’s gear, then make sure you drink the man’s beer “

So was the messaging that Wgtn representative rugby league players received from a beer company executive as he handed out beer branded tee shirts along with some free product and an invite to a new beer launch at the brewery. Sounded like fun as a new bunch of influential men became willing although unwittingly instant disciples for the booze trade to their communities. That was almost 40 years ago and its not hard to see some of the negative health impacts that this has had for especially indigenous communities over time.

Last Saturday the 12^{th of} October the Wgtn Māori Team played the Wgtn Wedgetails Aboriginal team from NSW. Two indigenous teams from communities experiencing similar challenging health and social outcomes.

Not a drop of alcohol was available at the ground, in the changing rooms or at the after-match prize giving function. 40 years ago, there would’ve been a riot at the suggestion of a “dry” after match.

Instead, the messaging was about hauora, whanau and wellbeing. The T-shirts, promotional stalls and banners at the ground championed being smoke-free and alcohol free. Blood pressure and heart check stations were available. Cancer and stroke awareness pamphlets.

What’s changed?

Bringing this event together, the discussions between both camps started 12 months earlier and it was always about more than a game of league. Culture, language and improving community health outcomes / well-being – Hauora, aligned with indigenous ways of thinking were at the centre. The sharing of connection to place (whenua) , language (reo) ,ritual (tikanga) and ancestors (tipuna) were as important if not more so than the game itself.  

A visit to Ngāti Toa – Ora Toa health services and a pōhiri at Waiwhetū marae enabled engagement and sharing of community Hauora themes and indigenous solutions to creating wellbeing in the community.

For most of the 60 plus strong visiting rōpu this was their first time on a marae. For some it was the first time they’d left their own whenua. The karanga, the hongi, the exchange of korero, waiata and tohu were spiritual moments connecting trans- Tasman indigenous peoples.

As one of the elders Geoff Naden said in the wharenui “as I entered the marae, I felt my ancestors come with me”. In a later conversation he shared that the young men in the group would go home stronger in themselves, pursuing their own culture, and that this occasion would stay with them for the rest of their lives.

Wellington Rugby League were proud to facilitate this event coming together with the Wgtn Māori rugby league community and for the partnerships that made the event possible. We’d like to thank the following organisations:

Atiawa Toa FM, Happy Hire, Ora Toa, Kokiri Marae Health and Social Services, Toa ITM , Healthy Families Hutt Valley, Ssangyong Lower Hutt, Te Korowai o Te Whanganui-a-Tara Māori Wardens, Rāranga-Building Careers, Heart and Stroke Foundation. Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Te Rūnanganui o Te Āti Awa.

We especially thank the Hutt City Council for making the ground available “out of season”. Because, this was more than a bunch of blokes being able play footy. It enabled a community platform to “change the messaging” and overtime the behaviors which bring hauora – wellbeing improvement to not just indigenous communities, but all peoples.  

It was good to see that tamariki teams aged 10 -12 years old played the opening games. What were the messages that they saw? 30-40 years from now what will the health outcomes look like for them?

As Dame Whina Cooper said…”Take care of what our children see, hear and feel. For how the children grow , so will the shape of Aotearoa.”

That’s what this game was about.

Ngā mihi nui

Andre Whittaker

Article added: Monday 14 October 2024