Encountering Indigenous Knowledge. The journey of an Italian anthropologist researching Mäori and rugby

How can researchers coming from non-Indigenous realities and disciplines engage with Indigenous research and researchers? How can these encounters benefit Indigenous communities and knowl- edges (and those of the non-Indigenous researchers)? These are the questions elicited by my experience as an Italian doctoral student in anthropology engaging with cultural and academic communities that were not my own and happened to be Indigenous – specifically, Mäori. I set out to investigate the relationship between Mäori and rugby and located myself within Mäori studies, trying to understand and integrate Kaupapa Mäori research. Both the intricacy of the context and the multifacetedness of my own self-identifications and scientific background created a complex scenario. The historical connivance of anthropology with colonialism and the apparent non-urgency of the rugby topic further raised questions. This paper will elaborate on this journey, observing the potentialities of Indigenous approaches from an “external” perspective while purporting the possibility of a cross-cultural and cross- disciplinary approach to Indigenous research

Once were Warriors, now are Rugby Players? Control and Agency in the Historical Trajectory of the Māori Formulations of Masculinity in Rugby

In Māori society rugby has come to be viewed as a platform to maintain an indigenous model of masculinity as well as one of the main sites for the achievement of prestige. National and international representations of the Māori man as a rugby player—a present-day version of the Māori warrior—apparently corroborate the indigenous experience of rugby. This is the result of the more than one-century-long Māori negotiation with rugby, a practice where they were allowed to occupy a space. However, this phenomenon is made of multiple nuances, ambiguities and tensions, which reflect the constraints framing the indigenisation of rugby and major changes such as the urbanisation of Māori and the introduction of professionalism in rugby. This paper will explore the Māori formulations of masculinity in rugby, problematising the dominant axiomatic Māori warrior-rugby player and viewing the phenomenon as historical, contemporary and now taking new directions

The Global Warrior. Māori, rugby, and diasporic Indigeneity

Many Māori men today follow a career in rugby union to achieve a good life, tracing their trajectories as athletes and as men in a dynamic scenario of global mobility. Historically, Māori men have played a significant role in the illustrious New Zealand rugby. Their game has also contributed to restoring Māori’s “depleted manhood”. In Māori settings, rugby has come to be associated with mana “spiritual prestige or authority,” which makes players responsible towards their communities, and has become a privileged site for men to achieve recognition and leadership. In 1995, the professionalization of international rugby added opportunities for socioeconomic progress. Māori masculinities share the colonial construct of the noble (yet violent) warrior with other Indigenous masculinities. Moreover, the warrior conjures an effort to withstand cultural, social, and political vulnerability, which characterizes the Indigenous condition as much as struggle does

Fostering the Rapprochement of Anthropology and Indigenous Studies: The Encounter of an Italian Anthropologist with Kaupapa Māori Research

This chapter considers the issue of decolonization and suggests two major implications for the decolonization of an anthropological practice premised on collaboration with indigenous actors, scholars and communities. The collaboration between indigenous actors and anthropologists also helped in fostering the process of both formation and visibility of many indigenous intellectuals in different academic and non-academic settings. Different proposals of collaboration and cooperation in research practice and writing emerged from these critiques. Ever since the 1960s collaboration in different academic settings has highlighted its interdisciplinary mode of dialogue and conversation that anthropologists entertain across disciplines with scientists, historians, sociologists, philosophers, cultural studies scholars, students in order to elaborate new perspectives on the fast changing cultural and social landscapes. The collaboration between engaged anthropology and indigenous studies can produce a multi-textual hermeneutics, where the multi-textuality is a way of interpreting and representing the complex and multifaceted aspects of a given situation

Japanese Pop Culture, Identification, and Socialization: The Case of an Italian Web - Community

Japanese pop culture has influenced Italy over the last thirty years. In the ‘70s anime started to fill the airtime of emerging private TV channels, marking the childhood of those Italians who grew up in those years and until the early ‘90s, when manga finally appeared in the Italian market. Globalization and the Internet have made other aspects of Japanese pop culture available to Italians and the rest of the world alike. It has resulted in a very active Italian fandom spanning different generations, and in a strong fascination with Japan. This paper aims to provide insights into the way Italian fans perceive Japanese pop culture and Japan; on the kind of bonds with Japan they develop, and how they socialize. It does so by considering the biggest Italian web-community, AnimeClick.it, as a microcosm of the Italian fandom’s interactions and emotions. Privileging a qualitative method, it focuses on the people who give life to the website. Their images of Japanese pop culture reveal the recognition of a specific cultural odour perceived as pleasant, which translates into an interest in Japan. Those fans associate Japan with images of fantasy and charming mystery that nevertheless co-exist with perceptions of extreme difference, echoing the notion of Japanese uniqueness, so that Orientalist processes are re-enacted. There are intergenerational differences in the way fans have developed an emotional bond, and look at Japanese pop culture. However, these are mediated and transcended through their socialization and collaboration in the web-community, opening up new perspectives for the future evolution of Japanese pop culture’s influence in Italy

Behind the Mask: Intersectional (In)visibility of Indo - Fijian Queer Experiences

The Fijian LGBTQI+ movement has significantly grown, shaped around a more significant Pacific identity. The participation of queer activists from the Indo-Fijian community, which represents about 35% of Fiji’s population, is limited, and the struggles, needs, and aspirations of this LGBTQI+ community are mainly invisible. This invisibility is framed within Fiji’s political conflicts. However, there is also a form of self-censorship due to cultural and religious barriers, as well as to dynamics that speak about the trauma of the indentured system and postcolonial violence. Contemporaneously, non-political spaces provide avenues for visibility. While some Indo-Fijian religious contexts wel- come gender and sexual diversity forms, these are becoming visible aided by popular social media platforms and Bollywood cinema’s influence. This pro- ject explores the dynamics of the Indo-Fijian queer community within Fiji and its broader LGBTQI+ movement, aiming to identify barriers specific to their community and strategies for recognition, visibility, and participation in advo- cacy and activism. The project is approached as activist research and includes interviews and group discussions with Indo-Fijians self-identifying LGBTQI+

Once were Warriors, now are Rugby Players? Control and Agency in the Historical Trajectory of the Māori Formulations of Masculinity in Rugby

In Māori society rugby has come to be viewed as a platform to maintain an indigenous model of masculinity as well as one of the main sites for the achievement of prestige. National and international representations of the Māori man as a rugby player—a present-day version of the Māori warrior—apparently corroborate the indigenous experience of rugby. This is the result of the more than one-century-long Māori negotiation with rugby, a practice where they were allowed to occupy a space. However, this phenomenon is made of multiple nuances, ambiguities and tensions, which reflect the constraints framing the indigenisation of rugby and major changes such as the urbanisation of Māori and the introduction of professionalism in rugby. This paper will explore the Māori formulations of masculinity in rugby, problematising the dominant axiomatic Māori warrior-rugby player and viewing the phenomenon as historical, contemporary and now taking new directions