-Maurice Craig
On Sunday morning Paige and I took a black taxi tour through Shankill Road and Falls Road in West Belfast. Shankill is the Protestant community and Falls is the Catholic side. Before going into the neighborhood our cab driver gave us an overview of the history. Right now there is a cease fire so it's as safe as it's ever been to go into the communities. However, the way our cab driver was talking, not sure how long there will be peace. I mean, you want to be optimistic, but any political decision concerning the status of Northern Ireland can quickly start an uproar. For now, stand still and everybody's safe.
It's too bad because Belfast has really built itself up the last 10 years, Peter was telling us how the city has gotten a complete makeover. Also, they're just getting used to tourists, the city is very welcoming because of this. I suppose most people skip over the North on their visit to Ireland. I'm really happy I got to go, I feel like I understand the situation much more. Both sides of it make me sad, and as you can see from the pictures, aggression is not subtle; violence is a decoration in these neighborhoods.
These first murals are from Shankill, the Protestant side. This is William of Orange, referred to as King Billy. He was the King of England, Ireland and Scotland in the late 17th century. He defeated Catholics at the Battle of the Boyne and in Northern Ireland there is the Orange Institution. Kind of like the Elks club, just as much drinking but probably better secrets than just handshakes.
Oliver Cromwell led a particularly ferocious conquest of Ireland in the early 17th century. He captured pretty much every major town in south Ireland, banned Catholicism and sold 12,000 Catholics into slavery. The rest were sent to bad farmlands. Oh, and he also invented the idea of ethnic cleansing during this conquest. Which is particularly disturbing when considering the next picture. What a hero!
I feel like having this painted on the side of your house would make any visitor feel uncomfortable. Unless it was Oliver Cromwell of course.
Not very subtle.
Alright this is a little more light-hearted, although kind of twisted. This is a depiction of the red hand of Ulster, a legend that has resulted in every inch of the city covered in red hands. The legend goes that Ulster had no rightful owner, and this problem would be settled with a boat race. Whoever first laid their hand on Ulster would claim it as their own. So Labraid of the Red Hand did what any reasonable man would do and cut off his hand and flung it to shore for the win!
Here's my writing on the peace wall. The peace wall splits the Catholic and Protestant communities and is probably about four stories high. It started as just a regular fence but grew in size and fortitude ever since. People write messages on the wall, artists paint, surprisingly most of the writings and art is completely unbiased. This is neutral ground I suppose.
Paige writing on the peace wall.
The IRA memorial garden on Falls. Hanging up on the peace wall are the pictures and names of celebrated IRA members who were killed through some type of violence.
This is a memorial sign for a huge fire that destroyed quite a bit of these streets.
This is a bit more polite than gunman murals, but regardless its still aggressive. There's such a feeling of unrest and discontent all through these neighborhoods.
This huge memorial is of Bobby Sands, a member of the British Parliament who led a hunger strike in prison which eventually killed him. He was protesting the fact that IRA members weren't allowed Special Category Status usually given to political prisoners. Instead they still had to wear prison uniforms, do prison work, etc. They started wearing blankets and stopped eating in response. The anniversary of his death was actually yesterday. This received a lot of criticism and praise from different nations. I'd like to see the movie Hunger about it and maybe read a bit more into every aspect of the situation.
On the Falls, the community has made a series of murals that they believe reflect their fight around the world. I was a little surprised to see Frederick Douglass, I mean it's fitting but just surprising.
Comparing the Northern Catholic plight to the racism in the American South.
Well, out of the taxi tour and back in city center. Here's what City Hall looks like during the day, very beautiful
After visiting City Hall we went to a craft market, it was part of the Cathedral Arts Festival. There were so many cool crafters/designers on display I wanted to buy so much of the jewelry! Instead I just got a delicious piece of homemade carrot cake that was like four layers and a little pin with Mr. T on it for my backpack. Paige is getting a whoopee pie, always a good decision.
I promise the next entry will be a lot lighter, I have a couple beach pics!
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