“This simple example of embracing other cultures gives me hope for the future.” Baha’ií community spokesperson Huti Watson said Fransen’s speech gave an insight into what unity in diversity really looked like. “It looks like making space for difference, for people to hold multiple identities, to be unique even as we share a common identity as members of a single human family.” This year’s theme “kia kotahi te hoe – paddle as one” reflected that everyone had a role to play in eradicating racism and building unity. “We may look different based on what part of the world our ancestors came from, but we should never imagine ourselves to be superior because of our inherited physical appearance, language or culture,” Watson said.