In the first chapter of ‘Hauora: Mäori Standards of Health IV’, Papaarangi and Bridget have provided a superb summary of the issues we face when describing Mäori health status. They start with a clear description of our right to monitor Mäori health through the collection and analysis of health data, clarify the difference between inequalities and inequities and confirm the influence of colonisation on health inequalities. The chapter ends with a framework for understanding health inequities including the direct and indirect effects of racism. Such discourse is a crucial first step to allowing further discussion of the place of racism in NZ.