MultiCultural Aotearoa (MCA) is an

anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...

group that was formed in 2004 in response to

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism ...

attacks in the

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

capital,

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

. Its main policies are to: *Oppose the actions of the

New Zealand National Front The New Zealand National Front was a small white nationalist organisation in New Zealand. History First formation in 1967 Mirroring developments in the UK, a group called the National Front evolved from the New Zealand branch of the League ...

(NZNF) *Oppose humiliating immigration policies *Stop

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

-bashing On 23 October 2004, the MCA led an anti-racism march from

Te Papa The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring fr ...

to the steps of

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

to protest an NZNF demonstration. The NZNF had originally planned to demonstrate against Asian immigration, but after the MCA march was organised the topic was changed to support for the New Zealand flag. Estimates of attendance at the MCA march vary widely: the national television networks estimated 300, the

NZ Herald ''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation of all newspapers ...

estimated 800, and the MCA itself claimed 3,000. It included

anarchists Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not necessari ...

and members of the

International Socialist Organization The International Socialist Organization (ISO) was a Trotskyist group active primarily on college campuses in the United States that was founded in 1976 and dissolved in 2019. The organization held Leninist positions on imperialism and the role ...

, among other supporters. A scuffle broke out when the "Anarcho Faeries" (about 15 people dressed in costumes including a pink tutu) chanted at the NZNF and were joined by MCA marchers and bystanders. Eventually the National Front protestors left Parliament grounds followed by a small group of Faeries, a few others and most of the police and journalists.

External links

*
NZ Herald:Three arrests, police officer hurt after National Front march
Photos of march
TVNZ:Violent clashes at anti-racism rally
*Press releases related to October 2004 march:

6 October 2004

23 October 2004

23 October 2004
"Fairies Fighting Fascists" Anarcho-Faerie Collective
25 October 2004

26 October 2004 2004 establishments in New Zealand Anti-fascist organizations Anti-racism in New Zealand Anti-racist organizations in Oceania Political organisations based in New Zealand Māori politics Organizations established in 2004 {{NewZealand-org-stub