Looking Forwards, Looking Outwards…

After listening to the 45 minutes of complaint by Mervyn Gibson on BBC Talkback, I read the Orange Order statement in full and as someone who grew up in a firmly unionist family, attending Presbyterian Sunday School I was both surprised and disappointed.

The one thing both Rev Gibson and myself are in agreement over is that the negative image of the Orange Order has been developing over several years. As an illustration, three years ago, on 23rd Jul 2022, the Newsletter published a letter from myself about effigies of politicians being hanged on bonfires which ended with the following paragraph:

‘The bonfire tradition is here to stay, but it must evolve; it is long overdue that our councils helped to create an ‘Orangefest’ which had licensed bonfires, with Lambeg drums, fireworks etc, something that would attract rather than repulse our young people’

We agree that Orange Order has a poor reputation among people outside our tradition but is the problem really just the coverage or is Orange Order missing opportunities to improve its image? (I appreciate Mick Fealty’s point that some within nationalism take glee in ‘painting the Orange only in the darkest colours, but there are obvious changes that need to be made.)

Leadership

The Orange Order has both a religious function and a political function and aspires to offering leadership in both. Has it faced up to difficult choices and offered good leadership, or is it avoiding reality, too blinkered to connect with those outside its membership?

We heard Rev Gibson criticise the BBC for their ‘all island’ broadcasting, reporting stories from the Irish Republic and the OO statement accuses BBC NI of becoming ‘nothing more than a media version of Ireland’s Future’. This reluctance to look outwards is not a good sign in any organisation – it smacks of paranoia. Almost half our population have an aspiration towards even greater links with the rest of Ireland, and since the GFA, what goes on in the Irish Republic does have an impact on N. Ireland – we would be naïve not to pay attention to what happens in the rest of Ireland.

Opposition to kids from a GAA club joining with others in an event organised by Comber Cricket Club did come from the wider unionist community – but the Orange Order issued a statement backing that opposition! Surely the intelligent (and Christian) reaction would have been to welcome all children playing sport together, while at the same time reserving the right to criticise the GAA for their political stances. Being open and welcoming is the best strategy – supporting opposition to integrated children’s sport was not a good look.

Historical Problems

During my lifetime, nothing has damaged the perception of the Orange Order more than the protests over Drumcree. I certainly will not forget the sense of shame I felt when Michael McGoldrick was murdered in 1996 as part of the unionist pressure to force a march down the Garvaghy Road. I believed back then that the OO should have voluntarily given up that route in an act of communal repentance. Such an action would have won approval across the province and helped to wrong foot republicans, but the OO chose a path that led to further tragedy and humiliation. The annual charade of pretending that we still need a homeward bound procession down the Garvaghy Road damages the Orange Order by reminding everyone of that horrible sequence of events.

Looking Forward

The Orange Order and the Twelfth of July celebrations are not going away, but we do need to evolve with the times. The Parades Commission has been successful. Done well, and with respect, band parades can be colourful.

Bonfires do not come under the control of the Orange Order but Rev Gibson referenced recent criticism of bonfires as part of an attack on our culture. He must be aware that working class unionist families living near bonfire sites suffer more from problems with smoke damage, pollution and antisocial behaviour around bonfires than anyone. Tolerance for this disruption is fading, if we don’t regulate bonfires ourselves a bonfire commission will be inevitable.

Like all religious organisations, the Orange Order has the potential to do good, but it should listen to constructive criticism when it is offered, rather than dismissing such comments as an attack from the enemy.