Sectarianism – Page 2 – Slugger O'Toole

After Haass: US must understand it has absolutely no dog in a sectarian fight…

Mick Fealty on January 15, 2014, 11:20 pm | Readers 56

Interesting that although Richard Haass and Meghan O’Sullivan appeared on Fared Zakaria’s Global Public Square on Sunday (h/t Ruarai) there was absolutely no mention of Belfast or Northern Ireland. There was, however, a fascinating contemporary analogue at play regarding the role of sectarianism in the Middle East. Richard Haass: These are societies that have never really dealt successfully with modernity. You’ve never had a clear divide between the religious and the secular. People confuse democracy and majoritarianism. There’s not a …

Cartoon – Selling out the moderate (part 2)

Brian Spencer on January 10, 2014, 9:31 am | Readers 73

Brian SpencerBrian is a writer, artist, political cartoonist and legal blogger. Actively tweeting from @brianjohnspencr. More information here: http://www.brianjohnspencer.com/ www.brianjohnspencer.com/

@LADFLEG versus #Facebook

John Ó Néill on October 9, 2013, 1:11 am | Readers 577

Have loyalists finally taken the fun out of Loyalists Against Democracy (LAD)? Here is LAD’s own brief timeline: founded in December 2012 at the height of the flag protests, it was unpublished and then republished in July 2013 in anticipation of further protests. After acquiring 6000 likes, it was then removed from Facebook amid claims of sexual content (LAD claim there has never been any). They then launched LAD 2, getting 3,000 likes in a week and were then unpublished …

DUP illustrate unionist leadership as #RuthPatterson is in court

John Ó Néill on August 23, 2013, 12:57 pm | Readers 301

Yesterday Ruth Patterson attended court for her Facebook post and provided an interesting piece of optics for the television cameras. In a considered move, a variety of DUP ministers and other public representatives, including Edwin Poots, Sammy Wilson, Jonathan Bell and Guy Spence (to name a few), attended the court hearing or accompanied her to and from the court, clearly with an eye on the cameras. Other unionist glitterati in attendance included Willie Frazer and others taunting Patterson to get …

Free speech under pressure or action against inflammatory comments?

Brian Walker on August 20, 2013, 10:54 am | Readers 60

Ought we to be a mite concerned about protecting free speech from officious prosecutions, even when the comments are “obnoxious”, in the opinion of a district judge? I hold no brief for Ruth Patterson’s “alleged” comments on Facebook which it’s customary not to repeat once someone is charged and for which she has apologised. This Derry case is a sign of changed times. Amazing to learn that a “youth” has been fined in Derry for making “ derogatory remarks” in …

Colin Broderick’s ‘That’s That’: Book Review

John L. Murphy on August 6, 2013, 9:22 pm | Readers 247

While the phrase popularized by Seamus Heaney ‘whatever you say, say nothing’ endures as a code for Northern Irish character toughened by the Troubles, Colin Broderick’s telling of his childhood reveals the language unspoken. He gives us a glimpse at those in the IRA who were never by necessity singled out by their supporters, but who carried themselves with an air of entitlement, entrusted as they were by the Catholic community with their protection and their idealism in a time …

After a 5th continuous year of rioting is it time consider the poisoned well of north Belfast’s sectarian geography?

Mick Fealty on July 16, 2013, 4:18 pm | Readers 79

Here’s a sound copy of an interview I did with Seamus Martin of Tipp FM yesterday morning talking about the rioting situation… If you are looking for a shortcut through the whole thing, topics include: The lack of leadership from mainstream politics A combination of poverty, political powerlessness and a dire local legacy from the troubles The poisonous politics of sectarian demography “After all the Good Friday Agreement was a long time ago now…“ “The funny thing about northern politics …

Another interface and another petrol bomb attack…

Mick Fealty on June 21, 2013, 1:01 pm | Readers 62

Another petrol bomb attack. This time in west Belfast on the small Protestant enclave of Suffolk. Sinn Fein Councillor Gerard O’Neill was quick off the mark to make a statement yesterday: “Whoever was behind the attack and for whatever motive, it is a disgrace and will not stop the good work continuing between the communities of Suffolk and Lenadoon areas. “While the circumstances surrounding the incident are unclear at this early stage any attack on people’s homes with petrol bombs …

OFMdFM parties tell Villiers she cannot take their money ball away…

Mick Fealty on April 12, 2013, 9:13 am | Readers 48

That productivity deal that Theresa Villiers has been talking about putting on the table went down well with OFMdFM, NOT… Noel MacAdam in the BelTel: The controlling parties in the Executive also argued the attempt to use the promised package – believed to include EU Peace cash – as leverage could backfire. Finance Minister Sammy Wilson insisted it was the first time the Government had made the prospective funding conditional. Mr Wilson also described Ms Villiers warning, revealed in the …

Do all Nationalists believe in “what’s bad for you is good for us…”

Mick Fealty on February 27, 2013, 2:11 pm | Readers 64

I’d be the first to point out that FitzJamesHorse is blogger, and therefore on some level not real. He’s a nice to meet, if a little prickly in his online persona. But I was struck by this post from a few days ago by the bald statement it contains… Thats the thing. The Culture Wars in the USA have been won by the Civil Rights movement and lost by the right wing racists. Likewise…as last years Olympics showed British multiculturalism …

“I think it is somewhat contemptuous.”

Pete Baker on November 8, 2012, 8:44 pm | Readers 61

It’s difficult to argue with Jeffrey Dudgeon’s comments on the Office of the Northern Ireland First and Deputy First Minister last minute compliance with an FoI request – 320 days after the application was made, and one day before a judicial review hearing into the delay was due to begin. From the BBC report Jeffrey Dudgeon had brought legal action over the delay. A judicial review hearing was due on 8 November but the outstanding material was sent to him on 7 …

Sectarianism in Northern Ireland is common (and popular) across all classes…

Mick Fealty on May 21, 2012, 8:50 am | Readers 252

Alex Kane has a marvellous take on the Golf Club issue that blew up last week… He argues that Jonathan Bell’s only mistake was to single out golf clubs as singular offenders, and that the DUP should not have backed down… But then he gives the argument a gentle twist: If you’re looking for evidence of the ‘prejudice and the hatred whispered behind closed doors’ you could begin with most of our political parties. While it is certainly not true …

Kingsmills and why Northern Ireland did not end up like Bosnia

Turgon on September 16, 2011, 2:28 pm | Readers 97

The Kingsmills families have had a number of meetings recently in their attempts to get justice for their relatives murdered by the IRA in 1976. They met David Ford who has apparently promised to press for closer cooperation with the RoI government over the matter. Danny Kennedy who has been involved in the campaign said: “Thirty-five years may have elapsed since that dreadful night and much has changed. One thing that has not changed is the determination of the victims’ …

New Scottish law offers freedom from being offended, but at what cost?

Mick Fealty on July 20, 2011, 3:37 pm | Readers 28

It may be a direct outworking of the SNP’s unparalleled success in the last Scottish Parliamentary elections in Glasgow that it has so hastily moved its proposed Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Bill. Sectarianism in Scotland is, by and large, a Glaswegian problem. But, as Kevin Rooney notes on Spiked: The Bill introduces two new offences. The first, that of ‘offensive behaviour’, will cover ‘sectarian and other offensive chanting and threatening behaviour related to football which is likely …

Children and the mysterious origins of sectarianism…

Mick Fealty on June 6, 2011, 10:41 am | Readers 15

Great confessional piece from Anthony McIntyre, on the nature of childhood and the mysterious origins of sectarianism. He talks of his 10 year old daughter now living in the south, who on interrogating the census form, no longer knows what a Protestant is: When she was around five and living in West Belfast, she came in one day to announce to me her latest discovery – Protestants were bad. I asked her to explain the thinking behind that ponderous judgement …

One Man One Vote… Err… Not In Belfast

oracle on May 12, 2011, 2:43 pm | Readers 129

Unionist votes are worth more than Nationalist votes, all thanks to 6 men staring down a hole! Just look at the following distribution though Belfast’s current District Electoral Areas: Victoria has an electorate of 25,814 and has 7 seats Oldpark has an electorate of 22,408 and has 6 seats Upper Falls has an electorate of 20,530 and only has 5 seats Pottinger has an electorate of 19,929 and has 6 seats Castle has an electorate of 19,494 and also has …

“Scotland never divided the way Ireland did…”

Mick Fealty on April 26, 2011, 4:57 pm | Readers 172

Steve Bruce with a well researched broadside on the dodgy accusation that Scotland is awash with sectarian, football related violence: Scotland never divided in the way Ireland did. It did not divide politically: the native Scots who worked with the Irish settlers and their children in the labour movement and in the Labour party always vastly outnumbered those who supported tiny and short-lived anti-Catholic parties. Scotland never divided residentially: nowhere in Scotland displayed Belfast’s pattern of residential segregation. And despite …

POTD – It’s a lottery

Moochin Photoman on March 18, 2011, 9:12 am | Readers 5

I find this very sinister and to see the number of the house as part of this scrawl makes it all the more so sinister. I’ve photoshopped the number out. Found in two separate locations off the Beersbridge …

New peace wall for Londonderry and thoughts on divided communities

Turgon on March 6, 2011, 11:17 pm | Readers 271

Derry City Council last week approved planning permission for a new peace wall. From the Belfast Telegraph: The 170-metre long fence at the playing fields at Lisnagelvin in Londonderry will be erected as soon as possible. A litany of incidents at the interface, including sectarian abuse, stone throwing, attacks on the police, underage drinking and the lighting of fires have been recorded since last September. This peace line seems to have been requested and endorsed by all the relevant community …

‘Fuck the Pope’

Blank on September 13, 2010, 10:10 pm | Readers 214

Kilsally has expanded an extensive list of quotes and links on why some groups are objecting to Joseph Ratzinger’s visit to Britain with the objections of various Protestant groups. However, it is worth noting that Kilsally has been posting these objections for an extended period on the Orange Order facebook page he maintains and fighting a deletion battle with supporters much more direct (honest?) with their issue. While much of the more objectionable content was deleted, with every theological and/or …