Te Raukura O'Connell Rapira (born Laura O'Connell Rapira; 1988) is a grassroots leader, speaker and community activist from

Aotearoa ''Aotearoa'' () is the current Māori-language name for New Zealand. The name was originally used by Māori in reference to only the North Island, with the name of the whole country being ''Aotearoa me Te Waipounamu'' ("North Island and South ...

. They advocate for Indigenous land rights,

Mana Motuhake Mana Māori Motuhake was a Māori people, Māori political party in New Zealand from 1980 to 2005. The name is difficult to translate accurately, but essentially refers to Māori self-rule and self-determination — , in this context, can ...

, police and prison abolition, fully funded mental and sexual health services, LGBTQIA+ equality, the political power of young people and environmental justice.

Biography

O'Connell Rapira was born in

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

and later moved to West Auckland where they attended Green Bay High School. They are

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

of the iwi Te Ātiawa,

Ngāruahine Ngāruahine is a Māori iwi of New Zealand located in South Taranaki, North Island. A treaty settlement was signed with the Crown in 2014. Following ratification of the settlement with the Crown, Te Korowai o Ngaruahine Trust (TKONT) was establ ...

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 165, ...

Te Rarawa Te Rarawa is a Māori iwi of Northland, New Zealand. The iwi is one of five Muriwhenua iwi of the far north of the North Island. Rūnanga and marae Te Rarawa has 23 foundation marae: *Korou Kore Marae, '' Ahipara'', represents the hapū of Ng� ...

and

Ngāti Whakaue Ngāti Whakaue is a Māori iwi, of the Te Arawa confederation of New Zealand. The tribe lives in the Rotorua district and descends from the Arawa waka. The Ngāti Whakaue village Ōhinemutu is within the township of Rotorua. Ngāti Whakaue tra ...

. As a young person they were part of an accelerator programme for social enterprise initiatives. From this O'Connell Rapira co-founded RockEnrol in 2014 to encourage young people to enrol and vote in New Zealand's general elections. They were a founding team member of ActionStation and a co-founder of Tauiwi Tautoko and the Youth Movement Fund Aotearoa. In 2020 O'Connell Rapira petitioned the New Zealand government to make

Matariki ), signalling the Māori new year., litcolor=, observedby=New Zealanders, nickname=, official_name=, alt=, image=M45 Pleiades Pbkwee (cropped to core 9 stars).jpg, relatedto=, date2022=24 June, date2023=14 July In Māori culture, Matariki is the ...

a public holiday. In 2022 the New Zealand government passed the Te Kāhui o Matariki Public Holiday Act and the first Matariki public holiday was held on Friday 24 June 2022. O'Connell Rapira has also been involved in petitioning the New Zealand government for Māori wards, a complete overhaul of

Oranga Tamariki Oranga Tamariki, also known as the Ministry for Children and previously the Ministry for Vulnerable Children, is a government department in New Zealand responsible for the well-being of children, specifically children at risk of harm, youth offen ...

, increased government funding for sexual and mental health, gun law reform, violence prevention, increased income support and an end to online hate and abuse. From 2021 to 2023 O'Connell Rapira was the Executive Director, Movement Building at the

Foundation for Young Australians The Foundation for Young Australians (FYA) is an Australian non-profit organisation whose purpose is to back young people with the trust, resources, skills, and connections to make change. The organisation's vision is that young people have the ...

where their focus was on building the political power of youth movements. In November 2023 O'Connell Rapira launched the Narratives for Change Fellowship with The Workshop in collaboration with their former ActionStaton co-director Marianne Elliott. O'Connell Rapira is a contributing writer to New Zealand news website ''

The Spinoff ''The Spinoff'' is a New Zealand online magazine and news website that was founded in 2014. It is known for current affairs coverage, political and social analysis, and cultural commentary. It earns money through commercial sponsorship and su ...

'' and a TEDxChristchurch speaker.

Recognition

In 2017 O'Connell Rapira was nominated for the Te Whetū Maiangi Award for Young Achievers and the Kiwibank Young New Zealander of the Year.

Personal life

O'Connell Rapira identifies as queer and takatāpui and is frank about this being a driver for them to seek social justice and equality in society. Their identity and stand about a range of areas has made them a target for online abuse. O'Connell Rapira is also vegan.

References

External links

* Talk by O'Connell Rapira at an event in 2014 called ''Festival for the Future'' https://vimeo.com/106451253 {{DEFAULTSORT:OConnell Rapira, Laura 1988 births Living people New Zealand women activists Women political writers New Zealand environmentalists New Zealand women environmentalists New Zealand politics articles by quality People from Taranaki Te Āti Awa people Ngāpuhi people Te Rarawa people Ngāti Whakaue people