For a long time now, there has been a widening chasm between those who have and those who do not in this beautiful country of ours. It’s not good. Not good for any of us.
Despite the promises of “transformational change” from successive governments, nothing seems fundamentally different. The rich still get richer and the poor even poorer. We have enough as a nation. On a world scale, we are wealthy. Why, then, are so many struggling to feed and clothe their children or to put roofs over their heads?
Brooke Stanley Pao deals with these issues on a daily basis. She is the coordinator of Auckland Action Against Poverty (AAAP). It’s an apolitical group – there to be a voice for the poor, to hold politicians to account and to wake the rest of us up to what’s going on in our own backyards.
Tall, quietly spoken, her expressive hands delicately covered in traditional tatau that pay homage to her family and her commitment to service, Brooke is nervous about this interview. She doesn’t want the focus
