Holding the Line: Māori Public Servants Navigating Crown Spaces

This paper led by Zoe Tipa seeks to name, with clarity and compassion, what many Māori public servants have been carrying for decades. Navigating complex spaces: experiences of Māori working for the Crown in Aotearoa brings forward the lived realities of Māori kaimahi who serve inside Crown systems shaped by colonial architecture, systemic inequities, and ongoing Tiriti breaches. 

The article describes the complex emotional landscape of Māori working within Crown agencies—what participants themselves called “working for the man.” The phrase captures the contradictions of serving a Crown that has consistently marginalised Māori, even as kaimahi try to shift outcomes for whānau, hapū and iwi. Job descriptions may nod towards biculturalism, but the actual workplace demands often include unpaid cultural labour: translating tikanga, teaching colleagues, offering guidance, opening and closing meetings, and holding the emotional weight of institutional ignorance. Participants spoke powerfully about feeling pressured to “colour in the white spaces,” adjusting themselves to fit a monocultural understanding of professionalism.

Identity itself becomes part of the labour. Māori Crown officials navigate the tension between the obligations of roles and the obligations of whakapapa. While the Crown may pay salaries, the deeper accountability lies with communities. Some began public service careers full of hope for change, only to realise the system often limits what Māori can truly do. As one participant reflected, “You think you’ve come in to do a job… but the system doesn’t allow you to. Ultimately you are there to serve their needs, not the needs of Māori.” It is a statement that resonates far beyond the walls of any single Crown agency.

The paper does not shy away from naming racism—interpersonal, structural, and emotionally corrosive. Kaimahi described being second-guessed, dismissed, treated as outsiders, or held personally responsible by communities for the actions of the Crown. Some felt the creeping sensation of assimilation as they worked within systems that reward conformity. One described the experience as akin to “an abusive relationship,” staying because of loyalty to whānau, hapū and iwi even as the institution inflicted harm. These testimonies remind us that public service is often a site of trauma as much as service.

Despite the harm, the research highlights remarkable resilience. Māori kaimahi are strategists, innovators and protectors. They draw strength from wairuatanga, from one another, and from the enduring commitments of tīpuna. They use waiata to reshape institutional soundscapes, challenge structures through Te Tiriti-based levers, participate in Māori caucuses for solidarity, and create micro-environments within workplaces that honour tikanga, even when the broader institution does not. One participant echoed the wisdom of Moana Jackson: people may not know your name or see your work, but they will feel your presence. Transformation, in this sense, is both tangible and spiritual.

A particularly hopeful element of the research comes through in the visioning exercises. Participants imagined Crown institutions where Māori values sit at the centre, where leadership is grounded in humility and accountability, where Māori staff are resourced and protected, and where tuākana–teina relationships guide development. They pictured spaces more like marae—where robust debate is welcomed, and multiple truths can coexist safely. In this vision, Māori do not need to shrink to fit the institution; instead, the institution evolves to reflect Te Tiriti in practice.

The timing of this research could not be more important. Amid political shifts and renewed challenges to Māori rights, these stories are evidence of both the harm Māori face and courage brought. Māori presence within the public service is an expression of tino rangatiratanga. Māori voices, shared generously in this study, offer a roadmap for transformation.

This article stands as a quiet but firm reminder that meaningful change in the public service will not come from rhetoric or symbolic gestures. It will come from structurally embedding Māori voices, values, and leadership—honouring Te Tiriti not as a historical artefact, but as a living, relational commitment that must shape every corner of the Crown.

Find the full article here:

Tipa, Z., Pore, H., Manson, L., & Came, H. (2025). Navigating complex spaces: experiences of Māori working for the Crown in Aotearoa. AlterNative: An International Journal of Indigenous Peoples, 0(0), 11771801251388673. https://doi.org/10.1177/11771801251388673