The Famine Song

Court dismisses case because there were too few present who were likely to be offended?

Mick Fealty on April 5, 2014, 9:01 am | Readers 78

Interesting judgement yesterday… A small group of around 15 nationalist protesters was said to have been gathered nearby. However, the defendants’ lawyer argued that the band was playing Sloop John B, the Beach Boys’ song which has the same tune. After hearing evidence the district judge made no ruling on whether or not it was the Famine Song being played. But it was decided that the prosecution had failed to establish there was an intention to provoke a breach of …

Belfast No 2 District wants to try again: #Ardoyne

John Ó Néill on July 17, 2013, 4:15 pm | Readers 60

Belfast No. 2 District have now applied to parade along the same section that they walked last Friday morning, but were restricted from in the evening. Presumably, they now feel suitably fortified with the Assembly’s motion on the Parade’s Commission’s ‘illogical determination’ in their hip pocket, despite the fact that, due to AK47 NI21 not supporting the motion, it didn’t even win the support of all unionists. Since it was Belfast No.2 District that were involved last Friday, I am sure the Parades Commission …

Will unionism’s long 2012 be seen as the year when the wave broke?

John Ó Néill on February 1, 2013, 10:37 am | Readers 87

With the #flegs protests seemingly diminishing, it seems like a good time to wrap up where 2012 has brought unionism, although it can be pretty much summed up in one word – crisis. It was a year in which there were early signs of modest progress visible to DUP leader Peter Robinson in March and by November he felt confident to proclaim that the constitutional debate had been won. And remember, in 2012 we were told repeatedly how ‘Catholics’ were being taken within, and reciprocating, the embrace of unionist outreach. Looking past the rhetoric, …