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> The original Bionicle toys included spiritual people called Tohunga (Maori
> for priest), face masks called Kanohi (face), a stone warrior called Pohatu
> (stone) and a tunnelling character called Whenua (earth).
The sad part about this is that this looks like another case of
misunderstanding between 2 completely different cultures. Though I can
understand the concern of the Maori people about the using of their religion
and culture in a toy, it should be noted that LEGO did remove the term
Tohunga and that, in my opinion (here, I must insist: MY OPINION, not a
fact, not a presumption, not a wish, an opinion) they did not used these
terms in a harmful or insulting way.
The same could apply for lots of toys. There are toys about greek gods
(although this is a mythology, but from my point of view, it's all the
same), toys about dragons (dragons are often used in religions), toys about
monks and priests, etc.
The point is, I don't *fully* see why Maori people would be so upset. It
could be considered a good thing that Bionicle used some Maori terms. It
can draw people to want to know more about this culture. I know I didn't
know about this culture before!
But then again, LEGO should have used invented terms in the first place.
Terry
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