A racist message, which contained the n-word, was sprayed on the sign of Māori secondary school Te Wharekura O Arowhenua in Newfield.
The Otago Daily Times was made aware of the same message sprayed on a road-side shed on State Highway 1 last week.
A police spokeswoman said this morning they received a complaint in relation to the incident.
"Police are taking this matter seriously, as we do all reports of hate speech or behaviour that causes concern to our communities.”
She said police will be in and around the Newfield community providing reassurance patrols.
"Something disgusting happened to our treasured kura overnight”.
She said it made her absolutely hoha (angry) but she refused to repeat or post about it except to say it was a "a despicable act of blatant racism".
"I am ashamed as a community representative to see this occur in Waihopai, Invercargill.
“This is not who we are.”
She said it provided her a poignant reminder of how important it was to korero te reo Maori every day.
"Are we doing all we can to normalise that Maori is not a colour, it is our culture?"
Anyone who might know who was responsible was asked to contact police via 105 and quote file number 201222/5669.
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Comments
This is absolutely disgusting. However, I suspect it reflects attitudes throughout NZ. It's just that most kiwis are mature or sensible enough to bury these thoughts as they know how socially unacceptable they are.
Taika Waititi was right. NZ is a deeply racist country and this sort of nonsense tends to prove just how close to the surface these beliefs are.