I am going to give you a quick synopsis of my understanding of the "Troubles" in Northern Ireland because so many people ask me about it. Four hundred years ago, Protestants from the Scotland and England were strategically "planted" in Catholic Ireland to help assimilate the island of Ireland into the British economy. These Protestants established their own culture while the Catholic Irish held to their Gaelic identity. In 1921 Ireland won its independence from British rule (think of the movie "Michael Collins"), 26 of the island's 32 counties became the Irish Free State and in 1949 became the Republic of Ireland ending all political ties with England. The six remaining northeastern counties, which had a Protestant majority, remained part of the United Kingdom.
In Northern Ireland the Orange Order defended the union with Britain (Unionist). The Catholic side was defended by the Irish Republican Army (IRA) which wanted all 32 counties to be united into one Irish nation (Nationalist). After WWII, 94% of the Republic of Ireland was Catholic and only 6% Protestant. In the north, Catholics were a minority (35%) and discrimination was considered necessary to maintain the protestant status quo in the north, leading to the Troubles that filled headlines from the late 1960s to the mid 1990s.
The main thing to remember is that this is not a religious fight between Catholics and Protestants but whether Northern Ireland will stay part of the UK or become part of the Republic of Ireland. Partly inspired by the civil rights movements in the US in the 1960s, the Catholic minority in Northern Ireland began a struggle to end discrimination in jobs and housing. As the two groups clashed in 1969, British troops took on a peacekeeping role which evolved into acting as muscle for the Unionist government. In the 1970s a more violent IRA emerged with more than 500 deaths in 1972 from petrol bombs to guns. More than 3,000 people were killed during the Troubles. A cease-fire was agreed upon in 1994. Currently tensions are the highest during the "marching season" which heightens in July. The Orange Men (Protestants) march to celebrate their British identity. In the past, this is when riots tended to break out. I talked to some people from the states who were on a mission in Belfast for Habitat for Humanity. They said that while they were there, a march with 1500 people took place and there were 1,000 policemen.
I have been to Northern Ireland 5 times since 2001 to visit my friends in Eglinton which is near Derry. As I have mentioned before, we became friends when their son stayed with us for a month as part of the Ulster Project. This project brings 15 year olds, half Protestant and half Catholics, to the US during July as a cross-community experience. The program has existed for over 25 years. The Protestants call the city Londonderry and carry British passports. The Catholic kids call the same city Derry and carry Irish passports. So the identity crisis still exists.
On my first two trips to Derry, there were checkpoints, guard stations, and tanks patrolling the city. The manned British Army surveillance towers were taken down in 2006 and the British troops departed in mid-2007 after serving in Northern Ireland for 38 years. The vacated army bases are now being converted to homes for first time home owners. The city alternates between a Catholic and Protestant mayor.
You still know when you are in a Catholic or Protestant neighborhood because of the Irish or British flag flying. If you will notice in the picture with Londonderry painted on the side of the building, the sidewalk is painted red, white and blue designating it as a Protestant neighborhood. While I was there this year, they were putting up red, white and blue banners in preparation for marching season. The other picture, "You Are Now Entering Free Derry" is in the Catholic part of town.
The younger people do not seem to be as judgmental or affected as their parents or grandparents, particularly because they have not witnessed as much of the discrimination and violence. The young people I know are comfortable dating and marrying into the opposite faith. I went to a dance outside of Derry this year, and my friend told me that there were both Catholics and Protestants there which you would not have been together in previous years. I had lunch with one of the Ulster Project leaders who stated that the project has definitely made a difference; however, tensions remain.
One of the young people told me that for the first 6 months of 2010, there have been 27 bomb threats and 57 other attacks or shooting. This is around the same amount for the entire year of 2009. He explained that many of the IRA attacks were most likely drug related. The week I was there, a man's house was bombed. It was thought to be drug related. I wanted to go to the city of Armagh; however, there was a bomb in a beer keg and roads were blocked.
Sorry if this history lesson was too lengthy but I am asked about the situation there a lot. Despite problems (hey, we live in Memphis which is a much more dangerous town), the people are wonderful and hospitable. They were very receptive to this big American woman invading their territory! I apologize to my Northern Irish friends if any of my facts are incorrect.
