The Multidimensional Impacts of Inequities for Tāngata Whaikaha Māori (Indigenous Māori with Lived Experience of Disability) in Aotearoa, New Zealand

Abstract

People with lived experience of disability have poorer health and socioeconomic outcomes than people without it. However, within this population, certain social groups are more likely to experience poorer outcomes due to the impacts of multiple intersecting forms of oppression including colonisation, coloniality and racism. This paper describes the multidimensional impacts of inequities for Indigenous tāngata whaikaha Māori (Māori with lived experience of disability). Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with 28 tāngata whaikaha Māori and their whānau (extended family) using a kaupapa Māori Research methodology. An equity framework was used to analyse the data. The results describe: (1) inequitable access to the determinants of health and well-being; (2) inequitable access to and through health and disability care; (3) differential quality of health and disability care received; and (4) Indigenous Māori-driven solutions. These data confirm that tāngata whaikaha Māori in the nation-state known as New Zealand experience racism, ableism and disablism, compounded by the intersection between these types of discrimination. Recommendations from the data support the inclusion of tāngata whaikaha Māori in decision-making structures, including all policies and practices, along with equal partnership rights when it comes to designing health and disability systems and services.

Keywords: Indigenous Māori; ableism; disability; disablism; equity; inequities; intersectional disadvantage; multidimensional impacts; racism; tāngata whaikaha Māori.