There is the title, “Te Tiriti O Waitangi” which was not the original name of the Treaty.  Originally it was just simply “The Treaty of Waitangi.”. 

The title has been Maorified.  

Why? To make the Treaty all about Maori.  To give Maori prominence. Was the Treaty ‘all about Maori’? No, it was not.  

There were three groups in focus in the Treaty:
1. All the people of New Zealand, meaning all non-Maori (settlers).  
2. The British Government i.e. the Crown 
3. Maori. 

The second thing we notice in the inside cover is a picture of the actual Treaty.  Why is this given centre stage?  It’s portraying the idea to readers that this comic is based on the actual Treaty of Waitangi. It’s implying that is written in the comic is therefore authoritative and the truth. It’s conveying the idea that the authors and their judgements / opinions about the Treaty are to be trusted because they have studied the original document. 

Then at the bottom of this page there are the words “Ministry of Education”.   What’s this all about? There was a day, decades ago, when documents produced by ‘the government’ were trustworthy.  

The government used to be the place where politicians and bureaucrats were working for the people, bringing truth to the people.  They had the best interests of the country and all the people front and centre in all they did. 

The authors of the comic are riding on this historical view of government.

Because students today at primary, intermediate, and high school are, generally speaking green and politically naïve,  the vast majority probably still have this historical view of government.  

They think of the government as trustworthy and therefore, anything coming from the government is ‘safe’.

Little do they know that they are now pawns in a political game being played out by Maori activists and their woke fellow travellers.

These activists are after the minds of the children.  Why? So that when they are old enough to vote, they will vote for all things Maori.

Ultimately, this is what this comic is all about.

Join the dots – A Maorified Treaty title, a picture of the actual treaty, the publisher being the Ministry of Education. Conclusion?  I can trust and rely on what this document tells me about our history. 

Right there is the subliminal message.  Right there is how propaganda works.  Those who get caught in its trap don’t know they are being groomed.

That’s the truth I want you to understand today in this blog.