Springbok Tour Cross
In 2010 we wrote about the Springbok Tour cross; a simple wooden cross carried by St John’s College students during the 1981 Springbok Tour protests that was rediscovered here at the College amongst some discarded timber. Students from the College traveled from Auckland to the test match between the All Blacks and South Africa at Rugby Park in Hamilton on the 25th of July, 1981.
The cross was loaned to Te Papa by request and this loan agreement has just been renewed. The cross is on display in the ‘Slice of Heaven’ exhibition on New Zealand’s social history in the Twentieth Century, under the section titled ‘Diversity and Civil Rights’.
In our collections we also hold various archives that relate to the Springbok Tour:
- Sir Paul Reeves provincial papers. [ANG 95/1/33]
- Te Pihopatanga o Aotearoa records. Bishop’s files – Whakahuihui Vercoe [ANG 141/1/124]
- Anglican Communications Office. Records of the Director, Peter W. Davis [ANG 161/2/8]
- St John’s College. Dean’s Office records. Papers of Raymond Pelly, Warden, 1977-1985 [SJC 12/2/6]
Both the Springbok Tour cross and protest by the College was controversial and a statement was made during the President’s Address at the 1982 General Synod. It was printed in the official proceedings.
