|
The 1981 tour of the South African national rugby team around New Zealand was undoubtedly one of the most polarising events to occur in this country during the 20th Century. Never before had there been such unrest and division in opinion among the New Zealand public. A strengthening sense of solidarity and of social and political awareness led to many ordinary citizens taking up action against the Tour in the place of a seemingly spineless and ineffectual Government, an attitude which historians say stemmed from an unwillingness to upset the pro-rugby rural regions in the lead-up to the 1981 General Elections . The protests extended from early mobilisations in May 1981 until the Springboks boarded their flight home in September that year - and while the efforts of the anti-tour movement resulted in the one of the largest civil disturbances in New Zealand history, undoubtedly the lasting effect of the Tour on politics and race relations both within New Zealand and worldwide is its greatest legacy.