The graph below shows child entry into state care by ethnicity from March to June 2020.
Can you spot what is unusual about it? Certainly I have never seen a graph representing NZ ethnicities like this one before. Ever.
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7 comments:
Do we know what proportion of the child welfare front line staff are Maori?
Around a quarter of all staff are Maori apparently.
Proportion of "other" has plummeted.
Or one or more of the categories has been redefined?
I agree it is unusual, but perhaps it reflects the underlying mix of children.
Would you know if a child that is Maori/Pakeha is classified as "other" since the child is clearly not Maori, and there is no Maori/Pakeha category.
Hi Lindsay
Because I knew you would be interested, I went on to the OT site and found the equivalent breakdown for the number of children in care.
https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/about-us/reports-and-releases/quarterly-report/care-and-protection-statistics/
and then onto the Statistics NZ website to find the proportion of children aged under 15 (that was the easy way to get the numbers)
[Sorry - I can't past the results in with proper formatting. Perhaps you can.]
The difference between the population measures and those in care the top and bottom lines difference is amazing. I presume that is what they are wanting to convey with their graph.
0-19 y.o. in 2018 Census In care
Maori Only 9% 58%
Maori/Pacific Peoples 7% 10%
Pacific Peoples Only 2% 6%
other 82% 26%
What intrigued me about this OT-generated graph is the absence of a 'NZ European' (or 'Pakeha') group/label. They are classified with 'other'.
This is a departure from usual NZ depiction of ethnic data in any area - health, education, corrections, justice, benefit system etc.
And yes, first anon, where is the Maori/Pakeha child accounted for?
Thanks for the raw data second anon. The disproportionality is long-standing. One person would have it as an institutional racism problem; another might simply conclude that these children are disproportionately at risk. 'Why' is a secondary issue. OTs job is to protect the child first.
Says to me family is more powerful than the state. When families live together, even under duress, families become stronger. Whatever the graph colour.
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