Play it again, Aunty Bea!
Aunty Bea is a legend. Piatarihi Beatrice (Bea) Tui Yates, Te Arawa, Tainui, Ngāti Rangiwewehi, Ngāti Whakaue, Ngāti Rangitihi, Ngāti Uenuku Kōpako, Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Awa (AKA Aunty Bea) is one of the most gifted, clever and exceptional kaituhi Māori around. She was a force in the advocacy of human rights and Indigenous rights. Along with wāhine toa, like Toi Te Rito Maihi, Katarina Mataira, and Ngahuia Te Awekotuku, Aunty Bea lead the te reo Māori revival renaissance from the 70s and 80s. As a vital figure in Māoridom, she supported the rise of the Kōhanga Reo movement through her exceptional creative spirit, and her knowledge of te reo Māori, and pūrākau, particularly that of Te Arawa. Image: ' Hera and her Kuri ' by Piatarihi Yates She is well known in Aotearoa for writing bilingual books and Māori readers for local schools and Kohanga reo. Her books, including the readers, were and still are used in kura and kōhanga reo to support the revitalisation of our Indigenous