April 3, 2024 11:00am by David Farrar

Segregation on campus?

Blocking access to spaces based on ethnicity has an ugly past and has no future in New Zealand. @AucklandUni and any others with segregated spaces owe an explanation to the Kiwis who pay their bills. pic.twitter.com/LcsK2COng2
— ACT New Zealand (@actparty) March 26, 2024

This is a very interesting development. First how do they determine eligibility? Is it based on DNA or skin colour?

What is someone is a Fijian Indian. Are they allowed in as they are Fijian or are they banned as they are Indian?

Who are Maori and Pasifika lumped in together? Why are African students not allowed in, if it is about skin colour? Why do they assume all Pasifika would want to be lumped in together, rather than have separate study areas for say Tongan students and Samoan students?

Note that this is different to students voluntarily forming clubs based on mutual interest, or gender, ethnicity and religion and being given a room for their use. This is about the university mandating certain study areas are reserved on the basis of ethnicity

Incidentally the 2022 participation rates for tertiary education was 10.4% for Europeans, 15.7% for Māori, 15.5% for Pasifika and 11.5% for Asians.

I wonder if the next logical step from having segregated study rooms is segregated tutorials and lectures?

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