On the Saturday, about 15,000 people marched down Auckland’s Queen St in opposition to the Fast-track Approvals Bill.

Photos / Supplied

On the Sunday, Minister for Resources Shane Jones – one of the three ministers who would get to rubber-stamp major projects if the bill passes into law – announced plans to reverse the ban on new oil and gas exploration introduced by the previous government. Jones’ name and face had appeared on many placards.

The many protest signs - some hastily written, others carefully crafted - made clear the thoughts and feelings of marchers. Call it protest art or linguistics, these signs are often cost-effective graphic depictions of feelings writ large. To borrow a phrase from Dr Martin Luther King they depict the “language of the unheard.”

With his trademark, er, wit, Jones labelled the protesters “green burgers”.