Whenever anyone says, ‘There is nothing we can do,’ I think of the Knitting Nannas. I think of this powerful and politically potent group of older women who hold the frontline of so many impossible protests with a ball of yarn and a cheeky conversation, and not just an ironing board – an iron will! They stand in unity. They know there is work to be done. And they do it.
These are the women you’ll find with their hands in the sink at a social gathering. They are unlikely freedom fighters. If Che Guevara had a nanna she’d be here. They were the backbone of Bentley. They are the posse who pearl one and piss off many, just by gathering outside the local MP’s office.
They aren’t a malevolent force. They aren’t ‘organised’. In fact, their charter states they are a ‘disorganisation’ of nannas. They call themselves a ‘loop’. They should never be underestimated. The nannas are crafty. They knit the community together in a yellow and black cardigan of resistance. Something they slip over the head of corporate greed to suffocate them into submission. They are effective. They are an inspiration. And now, as we live in the pointy end of the extractivist patriarchy, we have never needed the sensible wisdom of nannas more.
This week, two nannas – Nanna Helen and Nanna Dominique – had a win in court against the state government; arguing that parts of NSW protest laws are unconstitutional because they infringe on the implied freedom of political communication. The laws were introduced in 2022 by the Perrotet government after Port Botany climate protests. The laws were passed with the support of the Labor opposition. These laws carry maximum penalties of two years in the clink and $22k in fines. If you’ve ever needed proof that the major parties are in cahoots with coal and gas companies then these laws are it.
Instead of criminalising polluters, they criminalise us; the people who want climate justice for their kids, for the environment, the people who want their government to make better decisions for the environment and climate – like the Nannas.
Let’s face it, if you are locking up nannas then it’s obvious who the real criminals are. Any government who locks up a nanna is the loser. Knowing that fact is what makes the Nannas powerful. The use of force against vulnerable groups shows up the bullying tactics of those in power. The Nannas have a strength that is unshakeable.
Okay, quick Nanna history:
Knitting Nannas Against Gas (KNAG) started in 2012 with just two women sitting, knitting, and surveilling a coal seam gas wastewater holding pond near Casino. Their numbers grew and they began staking out local politicians with weekly knit-ins – their express intention being to annoy them. I can guarantee that any MP who has had a Knitting Nanna on their doorstep has been inside kicking the bin.
The Nannas were part of the magic of the Bentley Blockade in 2014, when our community did the unthinkable – what we were told couldn’t be done – and stopped a gas company getting a toehold in the Northern Rivers. The Nannas were a core part of achieving that. They’re potent, they’re visible, and they’re loved.
The Knitting Nannas have become our protest superheroes. They bring hope, wisdom and wool. They bring political pressure. No one can make you do something you don’t want to better than a nanna. It’s genius. The Knitting Nannas are now a countrywide phenomenon – with international loops in the UK and the US.
So, as we head into 2024, with another year of battles looming, battles which those in power tell us are impossible, like keeping Wallum wild, may we reflect on the wisdom of the Knitting Nannas; when a community comes together, when we stand in solidarity in passive resistance nothing is impossible. Knitting is something we can all do, not just with needles, but with our bodies, with our minds, and with our intentions to work together.
The Knitting Nannas; saving the land, air and water for the kiddies. They are my Australians of the Year.
– Mandy Nolan
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