A century ago Māori were believed to be a ‘dying race’, their population having declined rapidly as a result of European contact. May the People Live provides a comprehensive and detailed account of how this decline was reversed in the years 1900–1918 through imaginative and wide-ranging action taken by Māori themselves. Lange concentrates on the contribution of the well-known ‘Young Māori Party’ reformers, Māui Pōmare, Peter Buck and Apirana Ngata, the early Māori nurses and the Māori Councils. He emphasises throughout the conduct and impact of the reforms at grassroots level. Relying on extensive research, this is the first substantive study of a topic of wide interest, then and now. Of real value and significance to students of New Zealand, and especially Māori, history, it will also offer illuminating insights to those actively involved today in improving the health of Māori.

Author

More about Raeburn Lange 

Reviews

. . . a significant contribution to debate in history, health studies, and policy. – Ian Anderson, Bulletin of the History of Medicine