Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

As in much of the world, anarchists and sympathizers played a large role in the formation of syndicalist-leaning unions in New Zealand in the early 1900s. World War I, the 1917 Russian Revolution , and the formation of the Labor Party combined to almost completely decimate the movement until the late 1950s, when it reformed as part of the New Left. Later, the influence of punk and then the anti-globalization movement would help grow anarchism's popularity, although it has still not begun to approach the level of influence it held in the early twentieth century. Perhaps the first to call themselves anarchists in New Zealand were several activists in the New Zealand Socialist Party , formed in 1901. Within the party, Wellington became the center for a group of anti-parliamentary socialists. In 1908 a 3,000 member Socialist Party held a conference at which parliamentary action was condemned by a two to one majority. In 1913 anarchists in Wellington formed the Freedom Group, which was New Zealand's first recorded explicitly anarchist grouping. First formed in Chicago, USA, in 1905, the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) had branches in several centers across New Zealand, starting with Wellington in 1908. Membership included many anarchists. This revolutionary union had significant impact on the 1912 strike in the gold mining town of Waihi. Anarchism would not rear its head ... log in or subscribe to read full text