item details
Overview
This banner has had an extraordinary life - it was originally made for protest marches in Auckland against the Springbok rugby tour of 1981, and it later survived the violent reaction to a protest march in Matamata on 3 May 1985 against a proposed rugby tour of South Africa. Its maker, Graeme Easte, documented its survival by adding this information to the banner.
1981 Springbok Tour
The Springbok Tour of 1981 was a seminal event in New Zealand's political and social history - exposing deep rifts in society. Many New Zealanders objected to the tour because of South Africa's policy of racial apartheid. Protests caused obstruction and the cancellation of games, and violence escalated between protesters, supporters and police during the tour.
Steve Biko
The banner features a portrait of Steve Biko - a significant anti-apartheid activist in South Africa who died after being interrogated by police under South Africa's anti-terrorism laws. Easte painted Biko because the date of the final Springbok Tour test in New Zealand was 12 September 1981 which was the anniversary of the murder of Biko in 1977. On the day of the test, the banner was paraded around the outside of Eden Park with a coffin in memory of Biko.
1985 Tour Protests
Four years later in 1985, the New Zealand Rugby Union proposed a tour of South Africa. Renewed protest activity demonstrated that the same issues remained. Graeme Easte retrieved his banner and took it to Matamata on what was supposed to be a peaceful march down the main street followed by speeches. He encouraged a handful of other Auckland protestors to join him 'to show solidarity with those brave souls in smaller centres who were prepared to risk life and limb'.
Matamata was a staunch rugby town, and the march was soon overwhelmed by pro-tour supporters who attacked the protestors and destroyed their placards. The violence shocked many, including government officials, and disturbed a widely-held image of rural harmony. The episode was reported nationally.
This banner alone survived but its wooden uprights were smashed, and it still bears traces of egg thrown at the protestors.
The proposed tour was cancelled after a legal challenge.