Kassie Hartendorp
Kassie Hartendorp is a community worker, activist and advocate for anti-racism, LGBTQI+ and takatāpui support, workers rights and Te Tiriti o Waitangi education. She is the director of ActionStation Aotearoa, a New Zealand community campaigning organisation.
Upbringing and education
Hartendorp grew up first in Upper Hutt, Wellington, and then Whanganui from age 8. She was born in the late 1980s. Hartendorp is Māori affiliating to the nation Ngāti Raukawa. She was adopted and her adoptive parents are English and Dutch, her biological father is Italian, Scottish and English and her biological mother is from Ngāti Raukawa. She met her biological parents when she was 14.Hartendorp went to Victoria University of Wellington, and while there spent some time in socialist groups. She also attended Te Wānanga o Raukawa in Ōtaki and studied Ahunga Tikanga.
Career and advocacy
In Wellington Hartendorp was a youth worker which included mentoring and running groups. She is involved with and supports a LGBTQI+ community and is a member of the Tīwhanawhana Trust, a takatāpui group. Hartendorp became a member of the Kava Club who were a group of Māori and Pasifika New Zealander creative people, and BOX Oceania. BOX Oceania was "a collective that fosters community and support for queer, trans, intersex, indigenous people of colour".Hartendorp has been a supporting member of Fightback, a socialist organisation, and in 2016 edited a youth issue of a Fightback publication. Hartendorp has supported the left-wing think tank project Economic and Social Research Aotearoa. She has worked for an Equal Pay campaign and was the Community Organiser at campaigning organisation, ActionStation. As an advocate and writer she has articles published in The Spinoff, Pantograph Punch, Vice and eTangata, Matt Roskruge, discussing the win over the Treaty Principles Bill in parliament after ActionStations were part of campaigns. Hartendorp is based in Wellington and became the director of ActionStation in 2020.