Speech: Jordyn Joy Pillay

Amandla awethu, 

Amandla awethu, 

Power is Ours! 

This is what my people in South Africa cried out, for freedom and diversity 

Te Moana Nui o te Kanorau, 

The ocean wide and vast 

Stretched out to an infinite limit, 

Mysterious, unpredictable, sometimes so tranquil and then so fierce 

I look at the ocean... It scares me, I have to admit

I am oblivious, unheeding and in complete confusion... 

I pause, I look into the ocean… then so reflective, so transparent

Wait… I am the ocean 

I am the ocean … I stretch out wide 

My attitude, my thoughts, behavioural responses, emotions… I cannot hide

Wide and vast I cover the earth, like the waters there's many of us 

I am the ocean

I cannot be read

I am calm and soothing and so accepting

Come to me… I'll bring you peace. I see no difference

I am home to fins and feathers, skin and scales ..home to

many, I freely give. I welcome you warmly. Abide in me

I am the ocean, strong… influential

Yet I don't see my strength

The influence and impact I can cause by taking the first step

Wait, stop...

Today I despise you all. I feel like a whirlpool … be my victim

I take delight in seeing you squirm, hands stretched out crying for my help but I kick you in the face and see you drift away, deeper and deeper until you sink ... at the bottom of my floor, helpless

I am tossing like wild waves to and fro

Can't make up my mind how to be

To embrace or not

I am the ocean … I am not free

I am never accepted for truly being me

I stop to look…

A deep look into me

Am I truly open to diversity

Oh no I am not, I am not portraying authenticity

Why oh why would I be so fake

I'm tired of trying, I'm tired of persevering, I'm even tired of telling people to try. It doesn't help

Tired, tired, tired that we claim to be accepting and diverse but yet all we're committed to is us … ourselves …

Where is the cultural identity we need to embrace?

The struggles were not afraid to face

I am just so tired of discrimination and exclusion

Wanting approval and then segregation

I am still looked at incompatibly

This world has hardened me just as they have everybody

I am so tired of the racism that killed 51 people in the Christchurch shootings

Tired of the same racism that ignored the voice of George Floyd

And I am so tired of the same segregation that tells my people to go back to where we came from.

And I am so sick and tired of the same discrimination that forced me, a new migrant, just 2 years ago to spend my lunch breaks in the school toilets

Why? Because of this (points to face) but what about this (points to heart) and

this ( points to head) and this (points to mouth and voice)

Does it not matter to you ?

I am the ocean

I am us

Always changing, never sure

Always contradicting, there is no cure

I am the ocean

I am us

Wanting what's best just for me

When actually there's many similarities

Oh I see it so clearly … Te Moana Nui o te Kanorau, the importance of inclusivity and acknowledging the value of different perspectives, experiences, and talents that individuals bring to a community, or just to me … Yes to me

“Elke druppel in die oseaan bring sy eie waarde, net soos elke kultuur ons wêreld verryk”( Afrikaans Proverb)

“Every drop in the ocean brings its own value, just as every culture enriches our world”

I am better because of you. I am stronger when we're together

I am the ocean

I am us

We are the ocean

Together we mean much

1 action 1 move of acceptance

1 gesture 1 reaction of kindness

“Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu” (Zulu Proverb)

“I am because you are and you are because I am”

How can we play our part in creating a world that is

more diverse:

Like the tides wash away the old and let go of the barriers that separate us

Like the currents we should flow together in unity

Like the waves, we must rise together- amplifying the unheard, shaping a world where diversity is a force, not just a gesture

Diversity must be more than a moment - it must be a movement

So I challenge you, ask questions about the cultures around you. Like the outfit I’m wearing today - every stitch, every bead and every colour has a story.

South Africa is known as the rainbow nation, every colour symbolises the different races coming together in unity.

These colours represent the African National Congress which is a political party that was led by Nelson Mandela who fought so hard for our freedom.

I encourage you to ask others about their story

During the regionals I had the opportunity to meet an inspirational woman, who is MP of takanini Rima Nakhle. So when I got home that evening I did some research and discovered that she is of Lebanese origin. And it hit me, I know nothing about Lebanese culture So where are you?

I want to hear your voices, tell me your story.

Today, I took the first step by incorporating te reo Maori in my speech because I want to learn more about this culture, so I took the first step. I challenge you to do the same

Nelson Mandela said: “It is in your hands to create a better world for all who live in it”

In my speech today, I have challenged myself and I have challenged you

Now, I challenge the education system.

I propose culturally inclusive curriculums, where every lesson weaves in different cultures and histories-  not just during Diwali, not just during Black Lives Matter Month- but every single day.

I also want to implement Student Voice Panels- a weekly time where students can gather and hear one of our own share their story.

No professionals, no authority figures- just real experiences from our rangatahi.

At Ormiston Senior College in Flatbush, we have 180 different ethnicities - yet I can only name a handful, that has to change I want to hear the stories. I want to hear the voices.

So you’ve all heard my speech, loud and clear. But all this, it means nothing, if we don't practice what we preach. It took me just 8 minutes to influence you-  to get you to listen to what I have to say.

Today, standing before you are 21 rangatahi of New Zealand, all convincing you that racism is a cause worth fighting for.

Now do the math - that's 168 minutes spent today talking about cultural diversity And I know, without a doubt, we have influenced you.

You will leave this event motivated, and uplifted. Now imagine if every single person- not just here, but across Aotearoa - took just 8 minutes to change a life. 5 311 100 people. 8 minutes each. What a difference we could make

Again I say: Ask questions. Talk about who you are. We need to come together as one in unity. For change will not come just from an individual but collectively

“Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, he toa takitini” -  “My strength is not that of an individual, but that of the collective”.

Jordyn Joy Pillay, now living in Auckland, New Zealand, was the winner of the 2025 Race Unity Speech Awards. She is a student at Ormiston Senior College.

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