This Day in History

July 10, 1985: Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior

Time Periods: 1975
Themes: Environment
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On July 10, 1985, in Auckland harbor in New Zealand, Greenpeace’s Rainbow Warrior was bombed by two French agents. One person, Dutch photographer Fernando Pereira, was killed. The Rainbow Warrior, the flagship of international conservation group Greenpeace International, had been preparing for a protest voyage to a French nuclear test site in the South Pacific.

Learn more from Democracy Now! interview with Peter Willcox, the captain of the ship and on board when the boat was blown up.

We highly recommend the 2023 documentary, Rainbow Warrior, directed by Edward McGurn and produced by Docsville Studios. Currently only available in film festivals. Watch the trailer below.

Related Resources
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Books: Non-Fiction

Heroes of the Environment: True Stories of People Who Are Helping to Protect Our Planet

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Teaching Guides

A People’s Curriculum for the Earth: Teaching Climate Change and the Environmental Crisis

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Articles, student readings, and teaching activities to understand environmental problems and imagine solutions.