Hook (Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungungu, Ngāi Tūhoe) grew up surrounded by academics and whānau who had attended university.
Receiving the Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Massey University while at Bay of Islands College was an early indication that university was in her future.
Instead, life unfolded differently when she had her first child at 17.
Between raising her children and working fulltime, she completed legal executive and tourism diplomas.
Yet her ambition kept growing.
She didn’t want to work for a lawyer; she wanted to be one.
“I thought, ‘Yeah, this is me, I’m going to law school’.”
The sudden death of Hook’s brother Teina in 2016 halted her plans as she helped raise his three children alongside her own.
“I have no regrets; it was the right thing to do,” she said.
When Hook turned 35, she decided it was the time to pursue the career she’d always planned.
“I believe my life experiences and being a witness to whānau impacted by the criminal justice system gave me perspective to understand what I was actually studying for,” she said.
Raised in Te Rāwhiti, Hook observed many loved ones moving in and out of prison or feeling the effects of the justice system.
Learning about the impact of colonisation helped Hook understand what she had witnessed in her own whānau.
Rahema Hook grew up in Te Rāwhiti and has just completed a law degree at the University of Auckland.
“I grew up seeing the effects of poverty and a lack of resources within my whānau, but I did not understand where those disadvantages came from,” she said.
Law school also deepened her understanding of systemic racism on Māori whānau.
“My experiences gave me fuel, sometimes heartache, but also the motivation to get the degree done.”
During Hook’s studies, she became a proud grandmother.
On September 24, Hook walked across the stage, feeling relieved.
With a few stages still to complete before she’s a fully fledged lawyer, Hook envisions living on her own whenua at Te Rāwhiti, travelling each day to one of Northland’s courthouses.
She was determined to use her knowledge to equip her own community.
“There’s legal information that many people do not know [is] available to them,” Hook said.
“So now, I can confidently go back and put people on to the right pathways or give them a better start to engage in their own justice.”
Brodie Stone covers crime and emergency for the Northern Advocate. She has spent most of her life in Whangārei and is passionate about delving into issues that matter to Northlanders and beyond.