Miraka Szászy

Mira Szászy emerged from a humble upbringing to become one of the greatest Māori leaders and proponents of mana wāhine in the twentieth century. Throughout her life, Mira pushed for education, health and social reforms, and helped shape twentieth-century cultural and gender politics and forge new pathways for Māori women. She dedicated her life to te ao Māori, Māori women, and upholding the principles of humanity, social justice and equality.

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Rehutai Maihi

While she may not always have achieved her aims, through her persistence she not only stood for Parliament but maintained on her own a Māori-language newspaper. Well known and respected among Māori and Pākehā, she was rightly remembered as ‘a busy wheel’.

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Lena Matewai Ruru

After her father’s death in 1943 Lena and her brother Eru continued his work, dealing with numerous issues affecting Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki and Te Whānau-a-Taupara land and the Mangatū blocks. She became one of the first women to chair a Māori block committee (Whaitiri No 2), and served on the East Coast Māori Trust Council.

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Dr Doreen Kartinyeri

Doreen Kartinyeri was a Ngarrindjeri elder and historian, best known for her role in the controversial Hindmarsh Island bridge affair in the 1990s.

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Ruby Langford Ginibi

Ruby Langford Ginibi, of the Bunjalung people of the Northern Rivers Region of New South Wales, was an outstanding activist for Aboriginal rights through her writing and speaking.

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