How many ways can you say you’re pissed off?
A good protest sign signifies all the things you want to say at a demonstration: I’m here, I care and I’ve found the most fed up/witty/creative way to express this. And after a week of nationwide protests for the Toitū Te Tiriti hīkoi, the at least 35,000-strong crowd that arrived outside Wellington’s parliament buildings on Tuesday morning had plenty to say.
Whether they were trying to channel Te Pāti Māori’s Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke or begging Act leader and Treaty Principles Bill architect David Seymour to “say less”, the crowd had no shortage of material to work with. Some slogans – “whaka round, find out”, “kill the bill” or simply “Toitū Te Tiriti” – had been seen throughout the hīkoi’s nine days, but last week’s viral parliament haka, led by Maipi-Clarke, stoked some new inspiration.
From the immortalised prophetic words of Hera Lindsay Bird to some classic genitalia jokes, here are some of the most memorable signs from the final day of the Toitū Te Tiriti hīkoi.
Mana like Hana
Toitū ur mum
Don’t be an egg
Shame on your breaches
No don’t do that
Kill his ballsack bill
we’re replacing the TPB with CBT pic.twitter.com/DsfEKoNabF
— cool timothy (@dreadconquest) November 18, 2024
Cede deez nutz
#SayLess Seymour
#ToitūTeTiriti pic.twitter.com/SqUgBAqc6B
— Kia Ora Harvie (@JayHarvie) November 18, 2024
Goddamn this stupid piss country
Can’t be Kiwi
Bitchy Bitchiples Bill
Let’s just eat them again
incredible scenes on the livestream earlier hahaha pic.twitter.com/KotNVkUvC9
— 🇵🇸 Tall 🇵🇸 (@birdluvr420) November 19, 2024
Read some bloody history
Seemed an appropriate message to take to Parliament. pic.twitter.com/DAbls0TMFP
— Vincent O’Malley (@vomalley) November 19, 2024