A TV presenter with a traditional Māori face tattoo has calmly replied to negative comments from a viewer, proudly standing up for her cultural heritage and identity.
Facial tattoos often spark debates online. Some people think tattoos should only be on the body, while others understand and appreciate their cultural importance.
Oriini Kaipara, 41, made history when she became a newsreader for New Zealand’s Newshub. She is the first primetime TV news presenter to wear a moko kauae, a special facial tattoo for Māori women.
The Māori are the indigenous people of mainland New Zealand. They see moko kauae as important symbols of their heritage and identity. These tattoos, traditionally on the lips and chin, show a woman’s family ties, leadership, and honor her lineage, status, and abilities.
Oriini Kaipara. Credit: Oriini Kaipara / Instagram.
Despite receiving praise, one viewer named David expressed his dislike for Kaipara’s moko kauae in an email to Newshub.
He wrote, “We continue to object strongly to you using a Māori newsreader with a moku [moko] which is offensive and aggressive looking. A bad look. She also bursts into the Māori language which we do not understand. Stop it now,” according to the Daily Mail.
But Kaipara didn’t let David’s negative words stop her. She bravely shared screenshots of his messages on her Instagram story and responded calmly.
“Today I had enough. I responded. I never do that. I broke my own code and hit the send button,” she wrote on her Instagram story alongside a screenshot of David’s message.
Kaipara didn’t just share screenshots of David’s email, she also responded to him. She explained that his complaint wasn’t valid because she hadn’t broken any rules for TV.
She also corrected David’s spelling mistake. He called her tattoo a “moku” instead of “moko”.
In her email back to him, Kaipara said, “I think you don’t like how I look on TV. But tattoos and people with them aren’t scary or bad. We don’t deserve to be treated badly because of them.”
She asked him to stop complaining and to try to understand better. She even joked that maybe he should go back to the 1800s if he couldn’t accept people with tattoos.
Despite David’s negative words, Kaipara says she mostly gets nice comments, and mean ones are rare.
In an interview with the New Zealand Herald, Kaipara talked about how it’s important to have more Māori people in important jobs. She said, “The fact that my existence makes some people upset shows why we need more Māori people in every job.”
Kaipara’s calm response reminds us how important it is to be proud of who you are, even when people are mean. She’s inspiring others to be proud of themselves and stand up to unfair treatment.
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Woman Who Is Allegedly Having an Affair With Prince William Speaks Out on the Rumors
Amid swirling rumors around the health of the Princess of Wales and her absence, a new shocking report has surfaced alleging that Prince William is having an affair. Here’s what we know about it and the mystery woman.
Kate’s long disappearance.
Speculation about Prince William’s fidelity has come into the spotlight once again. On an episode of The Late Show, host Stephen Colbert mentioned, «The kingdom has been all fluttered by the seeming disappearance of Kate Middleton… Kate’s absence may be related to… William, having an affair.» The conversation didn’t stop there, as he added, «The other alleged woman is — The Marchioness of Cholmondeley… there have been rumors of an affair since 2019.» This has reignited conversations about the royal couple’s private life.
«According to tabloids back then, when Kate supposedly confronted him about it, he laughed it off, saying there was nothing to it. Always a good response when your wife accuses you of cheating,» he continued.
The allegations run deep.
In April 2019, there were quiet talks about Prince William and Rose Hanbury. People whispered that William might not have been loyal to Kate, especially after a supposed falling out between Kate and Rose. The gossip came back into the spotlight when the palace didn’t share why Kate was in the hospital.
Kate has been resting away from the public eye since she left the hospital. The royal household said she won’t be back to her royal responsibilities until Easter is over. Rose, a former model who is married to David Cholmondeley and has three kids, is closely connected to the royal family. Her grandmother was a bridesmaid at Queen Elizabeth II’s wedding, and her son was part of King Charles III’s coronation ceremony.
Back in 2019, a magazine claimed there was an affair, which shocked the high society. Kate seemed to be uneasy with William’s public behavior and kept her distance from Rose, which made people think there was a problem.
Rose has finally spoken on the matter.
Lady Rose Hanbury, 40, addressed the whispers about her and Prince William recently. The mother of 3 made a public statement via her lawyers denying the rumors saying the rumors of her having an affair with William «are completely false.»
A recent photo shared by Kate became a huge topic of controversy. Check it out here.
Preview photo credit Wojciech Olkusnik/East News, IAN VOGLER/AFP/East News, PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo
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