THE PRO-TOUR MOVEMENT
As is the case with any protest movement, there were groups and individuals of the time who expressed opinions contrary to that of the groups protesting for change. Rugby stirred passionate feelings among New Zealanders, more obviously so in small towns and rural areas. There, anti-tour dissenters braved the scornful majority to march as part of the anti-Apartheid movement:
“They took the turn. Maree Horner, a 30-year-old Eltham housewife, caught her breath. The main street sloped away up a rise, past the Post Office, and just 100 metres distant the crowd began... She’d never seen the town so full except for the Christmas parade, Eltham’s biggest event. The protest group had nowhere to go but up towards it. The crowd from the Eltham Hotel had come up behind. They’d begun a chant: “We want rugby... We support apartheid. We support racist teams. Give us rugby.””
Further on, missiles rained upon the small group which was hurried out of the town centre by police. It was a hint of what was to come. Some in New Zealand maintained that how South Africans ran their country was none of our business and criticised the anti-tour movement for being run by ‘perennial protesters’ and ‘rent-a-mob’ demonstrators interested only in fighting the police.
Occasionally, clashes between dissenters and rugby fans turned violent, often as a result of games being cancelled or otherwise disrupted by the anti-Tour movement. The bitterness and anger felt by each opposing side at the actions of the other contributed to the great social divide among New Zealanders during the Tour and in the immediate aftermath. The opinion of many of the pro-Tour individuals was that politics had no place in the national sport of New Zealand, and that all rugby fans had the right to enjoy their sport regardless of other international issues that may be garnering attention at the time. While to people today it may seem that Tour supporters were not ethically sound and made selfish decisions, from a historians perspective it is important to consider that many New Zealanders did not realise the extent to which their actions could impact international politics, as many were not educated beyond high school, did not engage with international media, or simply followed the general consensus among people in their community - especially among those who lived in rural areas. Genuine rugby supporters would, under any other circumstances, warmly welcome a Springbok tour for the fierce competition and entertainment such a Tour would offer, and it is understandable that some felt cheated when games were disrupted, postponed or called off.
It is also true, however, that many pro-Tour supporters used unacceptable tactics to vent their anger and resentment, and that this led to many negative interactions between Tour supporters and the anti-Apartheid movement.
“They took the turn. Maree Horner, a 30-year-old Eltham housewife, caught her breath. The main street sloped away up a rise, past the Post Office, and just 100 metres distant the crowd began... She’d never seen the town so full except for the Christmas parade, Eltham’s biggest event. The protest group had nowhere to go but up towards it. The crowd from the Eltham Hotel had come up behind. They’d begun a chant: “We want rugby... We support apartheid. We support racist teams. Give us rugby.””
Further on, missiles rained upon the small group which was hurried out of the town centre by police. It was a hint of what was to come. Some in New Zealand maintained that how South Africans ran their country was none of our business and criticised the anti-tour movement for being run by ‘perennial protesters’ and ‘rent-a-mob’ demonstrators interested only in fighting the police.
Occasionally, clashes between dissenters and rugby fans turned violent, often as a result of games being cancelled or otherwise disrupted by the anti-Tour movement. The bitterness and anger felt by each opposing side at the actions of the other contributed to the great social divide among New Zealanders during the Tour and in the immediate aftermath. The opinion of many of the pro-Tour individuals was that politics had no place in the national sport of New Zealand, and that all rugby fans had the right to enjoy their sport regardless of other international issues that may be garnering attention at the time. While to people today it may seem that Tour supporters were not ethically sound and made selfish decisions, from a historians perspective it is important to consider that many New Zealanders did not realise the extent to which their actions could impact international politics, as many were not educated beyond high school, did not engage with international media, or simply followed the general consensus among people in their community - especially among those who lived in rural areas. Genuine rugby supporters would, under any other circumstances, warmly welcome a Springbok tour for the fierce competition and entertainment such a Tour would offer, and it is understandable that some felt cheated when games were disrupted, postponed or called off.
It is also true, however, that many pro-Tour supporters used unacceptable tactics to vent their anger and resentment, and that this led to many negative interactions between Tour supporters and the anti-Apartheid movement.