Letter to the Editor, Tuesday December 15, 2015

The new white gold

If Seshat (the Egyptian goddess of history) wanted to comment on the absurdity of humanity's willingness to overlook cruelty for the sake of profit, then more than likely she would tweet on milk, the new white gold.

'White gold' was the term originally given to sugar by British colonists between the mid-1600s to mid-1800s. Sugar was a highly sought-after commodity, and brought significant economic wealth and power to the British Empire.

Unknown to many Europeans who enjoyed the wonders of sugar, was that sugar was also the engine of the slave trade, which brought millions of Africans to the Americas, beginning in the early 16th century.

Early anti-slavery abolitionists challenged human slavery by bringing into public notice the evil and suffering people were consuming along with their sugar on a daily basis. The overwhelming response to this was anger, labelling the abolitionists as traitors, accused of jeopardising the empires' sugar profits and monopolies.

People are indignant that SAFE is bringing shame on New Zealand's international reputation with cries of traitors! Sabotage! Are you really that surprised that a small number of Kiwis are willing to brave public ridicule and social excommunication for speaking out against injustice? Yes, I know, you say, but we are talking about expendable commodities like cows, pigs, and chickens. That was the same response that was given during the sugar empire, where the lives of slaves were the expendable commodities.

Seshat reminds us that this is not the first time Kiwis have braved the storm of change. Consider New Zealand women were the first amongst the world to acquire the vote. Men shook their heads, sure that this foretold the end of the world and civilisation.

A recent example of Kiwis standing up for what is right is the 1981 Springbok tour. Here Kiwis challenged the sacrosanct rugby, and divided so many New Zealanders. I remember watching the tour demonstrations with my father in our Mt Roskill state house. I was trying to hold the TV aerial of our old Thorn TV under the directions of my dad.

We watched with astonishment as ordinary Kiwis stepped up to bring forth the huge underlying ugly elephant of the Springbok tour, apartheid and injustice in South Africa.

The morality of New Zealand's rugby conscience could not ignore the suffering that came with a 'warm glass' of white South African rugby.

Another visionary, Mahatma Gandhi, once stated: "An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation, nor does the truth become error because nobody will see it." (Young India 1924-1926).

Continual hate messages of traitor and sabotage will not hide the underlying cruelty in your morning flat white. If, after watching the dairy piece on Sunday, you find your glass of milk bitter and sour to taste, that is the mlange of injustice. Remember, concepts like love, kindness and justice are not for application of humanity alone.

I say bravo and well done to the Kiwis from SAFE. Again, Kiwis lead the world with our moral courage, and the choice to take action for ethical reasons despite the risk of adverse consequences.

POLU TAITO

Auckland