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mothmans_mum 's review for:
I can’t decide whether to give this three or four stars. So much about this book is excellent, but so much is also bad.
I’ll start with the bad stuff, because I want to finish on the good.
The author is painfully moderate and centrist. Even though he clearly sides with with the anti-apartheid protestors, his dedication to showing both sides of the argument, and criticising the tactics of both the pro- and anti-apartheid forces often leaves you wondering. And while the whole point of the book is making the case that politics and sport do mix, the author clearly thinks that politics is a separate realm to nearly everything else. He seems in two minds about trade unions being involved in politics. (His anti-trade union feelings come through most strongly when he presents multiple quotes critical of the Bjelke-Peterson government’s State of Emergency laws being enacted to protect the football matches, but which argue that they would be perfectly fine to be implemented to chit down a strike). He also repeatedly claims that while right-wing figures are politically objectionable, they are personally lovely, wonderful, great chaps and top blokes. This becomes absurd when he claims that the Springboks were all lovely, defending them against accusations of racism (apparently calling Springboks racist is as bad as a police chief calling all protestors unwashed louts and professional paid agitators), and describing their behaviour on and off field as perfect—despite not all of them opposing apartheid, one of them punching an antI-apartheid activist, and a number of them being involved in on-field punch-ons with Australian players. Apparently a Springbok punching a protestor is fine, but damaging property is indefensible violence!
The other unfortunate aspect of the book is that only the high-profile (and politically moderate) protestors are interviewed, most of whom later became right-wing Labor politicians and union bureaucrats. It is mentioned that more radical protestors existed (usually listed as ‘anarchists and Trotskyists’), but they are condemned by the author as not really caring about apartheid and just wanting to use the protests for their own conspiratorial ends. At one point, an ASIO report is quoted which claims as much, and the author agrees with it. Aboriginal activists are tarred with a similar brush. The author makes it clear that he believes that the best sort of activist is one who chooses a single issue, protests very quietly about it for a while, then gets a respectable job and doesn’t ever protest again.
Lastly, there is never a good political response to a number of questions which are brought up. The worst of these is “why protest South Africa and not Communist Russia?” The answers which a number of figures in the boom give are basically “well, there is no racism based on skin colour in Communist countries” or “Jews can still play soccer in Russia”. This is basically apologising for the horrors of Stalinism. Instead the answer should be “because Black South Africans are calling for international solidarity, so we are supporting them.” This is the same answer that needs to be given when people ask why Israel is being targeted with boycotts: because Palestinians are asking for Israel to be boycotted, and we should stand with them.
But I would still recommend reading the book, because if you read it critically, there is much to be gained out of it. Despite the obvious biases of the author, the lessons to be learned are clear. If it were not for the radical politics and organisation of the most left-wing protestors, arguing that the Springboks should be relentlessly protested, that games should be interrupted, pitches invaded, goalposts sawed down, etc, the tour would have gone on with no problems, South Africa would have continued having Australia as a political partner, and the huge blow to apartheid that this tour represented would never have happened.
There are so many wonderful stories of heroism and solidarity in this book which should be emulated today in the campaign of boycotts against Israel.
Lastly, there is much amusement to be made from listening to the hilarious and hysterical reactions of right-wing scumbags as they attempt to defend apartheid, or at least to defend their opposition to protesting against apartheid. It’s the exact same arguments that right-wing scum make these days when they argue against protestors.
It really shows the need for radical change to he system we live in, because as long as the capitalist system exists, those in power will keep oppressing us, and we will have to keep fighting back.
I’ll start with the bad stuff, because I want to finish on the good.
The author is painfully moderate and centrist. Even though he clearly sides with with the anti-apartheid protestors, his dedication to showing both sides of the argument, and criticising the tactics of both the pro- and anti-apartheid forces often leaves you wondering. And while the whole point of the book is making the case that politics and sport do mix, the author clearly thinks that politics is a separate realm to nearly everything else. He seems in two minds about trade unions being involved in politics. (His anti-trade union feelings come through most strongly when he presents multiple quotes critical of the Bjelke-Peterson government’s State of Emergency laws being enacted to protect the football matches, but which argue that they would be perfectly fine to be implemented to chit down a strike). He also repeatedly claims that while right-wing figures are politically objectionable, they are personally lovely, wonderful, great chaps and top blokes. This becomes absurd when he claims that the Springboks were all lovely, defending them against accusations of racism (apparently calling Springboks racist is as bad as a police chief calling all protestors unwashed louts and professional paid agitators), and describing their behaviour on and off field as perfect—despite not all of them opposing apartheid, one of them punching an antI-apartheid activist, and a number of them being involved in on-field punch-ons with Australian players. Apparently a Springbok punching a protestor is fine, but damaging property is indefensible violence!
The other unfortunate aspect of the book is that only the high-profile (and politically moderate) protestors are interviewed, most of whom later became right-wing Labor politicians and union bureaucrats. It is mentioned that more radical protestors existed (usually listed as ‘anarchists and Trotskyists’), but they are condemned by the author as not really caring about apartheid and just wanting to use the protests for their own conspiratorial ends. At one point, an ASIO report is quoted which claims as much, and the author agrees with it. Aboriginal activists are tarred with a similar brush. The author makes it clear that he believes that the best sort of activist is one who chooses a single issue, protests very quietly about it for a while, then gets a respectable job and doesn’t ever protest again.
Lastly, there is never a good political response to a number of questions which are brought up. The worst of these is “why protest South Africa and not Communist Russia?” The answers which a number of figures in the boom give are basically “well, there is no racism based on skin colour in Communist countries” or “Jews can still play soccer in Russia”. This is basically apologising for the horrors of Stalinism. Instead the answer should be “because Black South Africans are calling for international solidarity, so we are supporting them.” This is the same answer that needs to be given when people ask why Israel is being targeted with boycotts: because Palestinians are asking for Israel to be boycotted, and we should stand with them.
But I would still recommend reading the book, because if you read it critically, there is much to be gained out of it. Despite the obvious biases of the author, the lessons to be learned are clear. If it were not for the radical politics and organisation of the most left-wing protestors, arguing that the Springboks should be relentlessly protested, that games should be interrupted, pitches invaded, goalposts sawed down, etc, the tour would have gone on with no problems, South Africa would have continued having Australia as a political partner, and the huge blow to apartheid that this tour represented would never have happened.
There are so many wonderful stories of heroism and solidarity in this book which should be emulated today in the campaign of boycotts against Israel.
Lastly, there is much amusement to be made from listening to the hilarious and hysterical reactions of right-wing scumbags as they attempt to defend apartheid, or at least to defend their opposition to protesting against apartheid. It’s the exact same arguments that right-wing scum make these days when they argue against protestors.
It really shows the need for radical change to he system we live in, because as long as the capitalist system exists, those in power will keep oppressing us, and we will have to keep fighting back.