Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air
With Commonwealth Day celebrations taking place around the world, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has taken time to recognise outstanding volunteers in various countries through Points of Light.
First established in 1990, Points of Light became a way to acknowledge the contributions made by individual volunteers, and the change they’re making in their communities.
This year, husband and wife duo Mataio and Sarah Brown were awarded the Points of Light by the Queen for their campaign, She Is Not Your Rehab.
The campaign addresses the culture around abusive relationships, domestic violence and toxic masculinity.
Their son Angelou released a viral video in 2020 encouraging Actor and former WWE superstar Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to help spread the message.
“I admire your father greatly for standing up and creating She Is Not Your Rehab,” Johnson replied.
“Encouraging men all over the world to treat our women with respect, love and most importantly, violence-free.”
Sharing the news online, Mataio and Sarah said, “we are deeply humbled to receive this acknowledgment and award from HM The Queen.
“To know that our work to create violence free communities by supporting victims of intergenerational trauma to heal is being recognised by such a powerful woman, is encouraging to us and our whole movement in our desire to have global impact around the alarming statistics of family violence.”
The British High Commissioner to New Zealand Laura Clarke OBE said she was honoured to present the pair with the award.
“Their work with She Is Not Your Rehab is inspiring to see and clearly making a real impact in encouraging intergenerational healing and ending the cycle of domestic violence.”
