Winston Peters versus Black Lives Matter | The Jackal

17 Jun 2020

Winston Peters versus Black Lives Matter

NZ First Twitter advert that was removed
You’ve really got to wonder at how desperate NZ First must be in light of their recent polling results. Not only has Winston Peters gone on the attack with one of the loudest dog-whistles you’ve ever heard in New Zealand politics, but he’s also calling to a very small minority of old upper-class bigots that aren’t going to get NZ First over the line anyway.

But why exactly would he risk alienating a larger and generally younger group of voters, which obviously isn’t a winning strategy? Peters, who isn’t known for his tolerance, doesn’t just oppose the popular uprising because of what it stands for…he also fears the power of the people and the thousands of protesters who marched peacefully to Parliament last Sunday. Evidently these attack adverts are more a fear response rather than any actual tactical election campaign.

NZ First is essentially saying that they aren't concerned about the disproportionate number of Maori who are targeted, incarcerated and killed by Police in New Zealand. In fact what these terrible adverts and his lack of empathy towards those who die at the hands of Police shows us is that Peters has entirely lost the plot. Instead of acknowledging the fact that many of the prejudices that occur in the US exist here in the New Zealand as well, NZ First has firmly entrenched their heads in the sand and by doing so will come out on the wrong side of history.


Today, the NZ Herald reported:

Peters' blunder: NZ First's second 'woke brigade' tweet deleted after racial slur 

The original tweet had been deleted after it contained an image created by Third Culture Minds, which they claimed breached copyright. 
They told 1 News they did not approve of the party's "ill-informed messages associated with our imagery". 
Now Peters has had to pull a second tweet from his own account after the background image featured a protester holding a sign where the word "n*****" was visible.

Whoever came up with these despicable adverts needs to be sacked!

It’s not as if there aren’t other prominent Kiwis acknowledging that there’s a problem with racial discrimination either. If the Police Commissioner (both past and present) can publicly state that the Police have unconscious bias against Maori then Peters must have a gold medal in mental gymnastics to delude himself enough into thinking that there isn’t a reason for people to march in the streets of Aotearoa in support of Black Lives Matter.


Why do some politicians who have passed their used-by date feel the need stoke the fires of resentment just to try and stay relevant? Maybe they should enlighten themselves by reading a book.

Couple Winston Peters' ignorance with a lack of progress by Tracey Martin concerning Oranga Tamariki's discrimination towards Maori and their opposition to a Capital Gains Tax hindering young people from home ownership and it’s patently clear that the NZ First Party has run its beleaguered and narrow-minded course. Even their secret donors must realise this by now.