The Anti-Apartheid Network (AAN) ran from 1985 to 1990 as an umbrella organization for British Columbian organizations addressing issues in Southern Africa to coordinate anti-apartheid action. Apartheid in South Africa and South West Africa (the latter now Namibia) was an institutionalized system of racial segregation imposed from 1948 to 1990s by a minority white population to execute political, social, and economic domination over the majority non-white population. It created a racial hierarchy which determined one’s access to public facilities, events, housing, and employment opportunities. The ruling National Party’s violent enforcement of apartheid caused thousands of deaths and detentions, as well as over three million forced evictions. Significant internal resistance from political movements African National Congress (ANC) and Pan African Congress (PAC), alongside extensive international condemnation and sanctions, eventually led to negotiations abolishing apartheid.
According to its by-laws, AAN’s purposes included: working for an end to the apartheid system in South Africa; supporting sanctions against South Africa, including the severing of diplomatic relations between Canada and South Africa; supporting the peoples of Southern Africa in their struggles against apartheid and racial oppression; organizing non-partisan activities to support the aforementioned purposes; and providing a communication network for anti-apartheid activities in B.C.
According to AAN’s by-laws, its member organizations fell into the following categories: unions, including union federations, individual unions, and union locals; religious organizations, including provincial “umbrella groups,” social concerns organizations within churches, and individual churches; officially registered international development NGO’s; and community organizations, such as registered political parties, women’s organizations, student groups registered with their university, professional organizations, ethnic and cultural groups, and solidarity groups. Member organizations included the International Defence and Aid Fund for Southern Africa, B.C. (IDAFSA), the International Development Education Resources Association (IDERA), the New Democratic Party Vancouver Point Grey and Vancouver South Constituencies, and OXFAM, among others. Individuals could also become members if they had a valid reason for not representing an organization and agreed to attend regular meetings.
AAN was run by a committee known first as the Steering Committee, then as the Executive Committee. This committee consisted of the following seven offices elected at annual meetings: Chairperson, Co-Chairperson, Treasurer, Secretary, Communications Director, Membership Secretary, and one to three Members-At-Large. The committee was authorized to act on behalf of AAN membership between meetings, with all decisions subject to review at regular meetings held once a month.
AAN’s central focuses included educational activities and workshops, as well as campaigns and actions aimed at keeping the anti-apartheid movement in the public eye. It curated and promoted materials for K-12 educators, coordinated and participated in various conferences and workshops aimed at anti-apartheid activists and teachers, and organized several boycotts and protest campaigns. The AAN’s anti-apartheid actions usually addressed South Africa, but some also targeted other Southern African countries including Mozambique and Namibia.