~| Parihaka |~

Background Meaning of the Parihaka 

The song tells the story of the Taranaki Parihaka peaceful protests.

What the line explains about their passive resistance method

Te Whiti he used the language of the spirit,

Then stood accused, the madman and his dream,

He saw the train go roaring through the tunnel,

He heard the voice travel on the magic wire,

But he loved the silence of the river,

He watched the dog piss on the cannon's wheel.

By putting "You can't pull the roots out" implies that you can't pull the parihaka out of the person or people, you can move them but they will always be parihaka and have the spirit of Te Whiti.

On May 26, 1879, Maori launched a resistance campaign under the leadership of Te Whiti and Tohu. Throughout Taranaki, organized groups of ploughmen began to plough ‘confiscated land’ using either hoes or oxen-drawn ploughs through white settlers farms. The plough protests started in Oakura, and then spread to Pukearehu and Hawera. In Oakura, ploughmen worked for three days and ploughed eight hectares. White farmers threatened the Maori with violence. Te Whiti gave instructions not to fight back against either settlers or British officials if attacked, and not to enter the homes or touch any property of the settlers. Te Whiti claimed that they were not targeting the settlers themselves.

On June 29, arrests began. As ploughmen were imprisoned, others immediately took their place. Maori with the most prestige volunteered to be the first arrested. By August 1879, around 200 had been taken into custody; many were treated harshly and most never received a trial. Many were sent to prisons on other islands.