"The Hikoi is a way of letting physical presence do the talking. It is not simply a protest march against an issue, or an exercise in partisan politics seeking someone to blame. Instead, the Hikoi declares a hope for new policies which will address structural issues contributing to financial hardship, ill-health, lack of employment opportunities and social exclusion..."
-- from the Hikoi for Hope brochure

"A Hikoi is used to draw attention of the public to an unjust structure and to call on the nation to join and become a joint voice, to bring their physical presence. It shows you where to stand, and where you're coming from. It is a way to arouse the public mind on issues people should be united about..."
-- the Rt Revd Whakahuihui Vercoe, Bishop of Aotearoa

"During the debate leading up to this decision being taken, people shared their personal stories, the stories of people in their parishes and rohe, the stories of community groups that have to cope with the ever changing policies and practices of successive governments. The stories of institutions and Maori organisations who had their ability to deal with the peoples' needs impeded or taken away due to lack of funding and bureaucratic obstacles... These personal stories undergirded the call for the Hikoi of Hope..."
-- Jim Greenaway, Anglican Social Justice Commissioner

"I was rather stunned by this motion at the General Synod ... it's not the place you expect such an action. But I actually think that now is the least hopeful I have felt about social and political issues in twenty years -- so really, this is the time we've got to look again at this word: hope. " -- David Williams, legal historian and legal adviser to the Anglican Synod

"So our Anglican Church assembles a time and cost-wasting march on Parliament. Church leaders mistakenly believe that, regardless of a global economic slump, Parliament itself can create full employment, wipe out poverty and cure all ills [...] The church should be leading society in the restoration of earlier values of responsibility, self-reliance, discipline, security and the moral fibre that nurtured these. This desperate need is not emerging from the state, the media or anywhere else in today's depraved society. A ruined economy is all we need to fall into final anarchy. How shallow is our church leaders' thinking..."
-- G.H.Barker, Te Awamutu (letter to editor)

"The Anglican diocese of Auckland did not consult the grass-roots about the Hikoi nor did it seek any concensus from congregations. The clergy have not even told Anglicans which government policies need changing. I believe they do not have a clue. It is very easy to blame someone else [...] We certainly do need a vision, but this Hikoi is a cheap grandstanding stunt ..."
-- M Norris, Kerikeri (letter to editor)

"The Anglican synod is making an ill-considered jump into the political arena. Its left-wing, idealistic policies are set to drive a schism through the Church [...] From the pulpit, business is often derided. Yet in Auckland we are still struggling to attract sponsors to pay off the debt on our cathedral, a building that owes its completion largely to the generosity of business. The church should rethink its responsibilities..."
-- Anne Hargreaves, Remuera (letter to editor)

"The Hikoi of Hope is both an exercise in moving the heart of the nation and physically moving people on the road, to events, and to Wellington..."
-- Jim Greenaway, Anglican Social Justice Commissioner

"The mandate to build a society free of poverty dates back to the vision of the prophet Isaiah. He told of all God's people enjoying the right to build houses and inhabit them, to plant vineyards and eat their fruit, to benefit from the work of their hands and to grow old with dignity.

"In response to that vision we make our own Hikoi with Christ. We can no longer stand by on the side of the road and watch as poverty is portrayed as the fault of the poor, and the real value of benefits decline. Above all, this is a Hikoi of Hope: a sign to every New Zealander who lives in poverty that we know their plight, find it intolerable and are walking to change it.

"We dare to use the word "hope" because it belongs to the vocabulary of every Christian and we are no longer willing to leave it to economists and politicians to define hope for us..."
-- from the Hikoi for Hope brochure