This photo might have been taken on almost any Saturday from 1986 to 1989. The cop in front of the South African Embassy has come up with some petty quibble about the picket, most likely the volume of the megaphone. Steven Kitson is adroitly holding his ground. And the comrade in between clearly doesn't believe the cop is winning the argument.

There must have been hundreds of photos like this. Most would have remained undeveloped unless a prosecution was in the offing. Any kind of confrontation on the picket was the cue for evidence gathering: photos, recordings, notes and witnesses' contact details. Such standing operating procedures were essential to City of London Anti-Apartheid Group's incredible acquittal rate in the courts when a politicized police force attempted to make the Mandela picket go away.

Steven was only 40 when he died of cancer on Nov. 12, 1997.

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RELATED LINKS:

David Kitson's obituary [FRFI]
David Kitson and me
David Kitson's obituary
Steven Kitson
Pie in the sky
Norma’s Obituary [FRFI]
Norma’s Obituary [Guardian]
Norma Kitson [Photo]
Where Sixpence Lives