Published 12 February 201012 May 2010 · Main Posts ‘Only one man in a large army’ Jeff Sparrow It seems like just yesterday. Of course, in all the celebrations, no-one will raise the rather embarrassing fact that, throughout the Apartheid era, most Western governments entirely supported the racist regime’s assessment of the ANC leader as a dangerous criminal. Indeed, it was only in 2008 that the US removed Mandela from its terrorist watch list. Certainly, here in Australia, John Howard and most of the Liberal Party always opposed the ANC call for a cultural and economic boycott of South Africa, while desperately promoting all kinds of dubious collaborators as alternatives to Mandela. The victory over apartheid was, in other words, the result of mass action, not only in South Africa but here in Australia, too. This clip from NZ gives a taste of what that struggle involved. Which brings us to another Specials track. This one’s particularly relevant to Melbourne, where, in response to Ted Ballieu’s (!) acknowledgement of racial violence in the city, Education Minister Bronwyn Pike had this to say: Ted Baillieu has called Victorians racist, I’d like to ask Ted Baillieu to name those racist people, maybe it’s my next door neighbour, maybe it’s someone’s mum and dad, maybe it’s somebody’s friends. Yes, indeed. Maybe it is. Jeff Sparrow Jeff Sparrow is a Walkley Award-winning writer, broadcaster and former editor of Overland. More by Jeff Sparrow › Overland is a not-for-profit magazine with a proud history of supporting writers, and publishing ideas and voices often excluded from other places. If you like this piece, or support Overland’s work in general, please subscribe or donate. Related articles & Essays First published in Overland Issue 228 8 September 202312 September 2023 · Main Posts Announcing the 2023 Judith Wright Poetry Prize ($9000) Editorial Team Established in 2007 and supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, the Overland Judith Wright Poetry Prize for New and Emerging Poets seeks poetry by writers who have published no more than one collection of poems under their own name (that is writers who’ve had zero collections published, or one solo collection published). It remains one of the richest prizes for emerging poets, and is open to poets anywhere in the world. In 2023, the major prize is $6000, with a second prize of $2000 and a third prize of $1000. All three winners will be published in Overland. First published in Overland Issue 228 8 September 202315 September 2023 · Main Posts Announcing the 2023 Neilma Sidney Short Story Prize ($6500) Editorial Team Supported by the Malcolm Robertson Foundation, and named after the late Neilma Gantner, this prize seeks excellent short fiction of up to 3000 words themed around the notion of ‘travel’; imaginative, creative and literary interpretations are strongly encouraged. This competition is open to all writers, nationally and internationally, at any stage of their writing career.