Palestine Must Be Free | Oireachtas na Samhna | Liam Mellows and the Irish Revolution – ‘a Very Important Book’

Confronting sectarianism The posting online of a vile video showing members of the Orange Order mocking the murder of Michaela McAreavey has been widely condemned. Last week in another video Pastor Barrie Halliday appeared on social media describing Catholics as ‘rats that need to be murdered with rifles and grenades.’ A wedding and a strike James Connolly is one of my heroes. He was a socialist, a republican, a writer, a thinker, a trade union leader. He fought for the rights of workers a...

12 Kesä 202215min

The Planter and the Gael. Last week US Congress member Richie Neal, Chair of the Ways and Means Committee on Capitol Hill, led a Congressional delegation from Washington to Brussels, London, Dublin, the Blasket’s, Derry and Belfast. The delegation met with a very wide range of political representatives including Government representatives as well as civic society. Time for Truth Natasha Butler’s grandfather Paddy was killed by the British Army on the evening of 9 July 1972. He ...

5 Kesä 202216min

A referendum on the Future Sunday marked 24 years from the historic referendum in May 1998 that saw almost three quarters of people in the North vote in support of the Good Friday Agreement. Despite the twists and turns in the years since then the Agreement has proved resilient in maintaining peace and in plotting a course for constitutional, political and economic change in the North and across these islands. Acht na Gaeilge – Anois The echo of thousands of cheerful, excited voices ...

29 Touko 202218min

Lá Mór Dearg As this column goes to print Boris Johnson comes to visit our political leaders in Hillsborough. Whatever he may say or not say one thing is clear. We do not need him to govern us. But more of that anon. Employers must talk to workers Several trade unions are involved in industrial action in the public and private sectors in an effort to get employers to increase wages and improve conditions for workers. With inflation heading toward 10% some current pay rates ...

22 Touko 202219min

A transformative election The overwhelming majority of citizens on this island want our future to be different from what went before. Those who voted last Thursday want those they have elected to represent their interests, to make power sharing work and to shape a new future. Attacks on Human Rights laws must be opposed The British government confirmed this week that it plans to replace the Human Rights Act with a British Bill of Rights. In a letter to Boris Johnson over 50 human rights gr...

15 Touko 202214min

The Sun Is Setting. The legacy of empire, of colonialism and of slavery is for many still a matter of the present and not the past. This is especially true for many of the former British colonies in the Caribbean. Last November Barbados formally removed Queen Elizabeth II as its Head of State. Since then the British government sent two groups of British royals as part of a charm offensive to the region in an effort to solidify waning British influence. The tours had the opposite effect. Cand...

8 Touko 202219min

May 5th - The Peoples Day Less than one week to polling day and the pundits and pollsters are filling the airways and column inches with their take on who will be the big winners and who will be the losers. Who will emerge with more or fewer Assembly seats? Will the Protocol galvinise a so far lack lustre unionist campaign? Will the DUP/TUV and their loyalist allies succeed in frightening unionist voters into toeing the line? Or will Sinn Féin up-end a century of partition and the...

1 Touko 202217min

THE MUSIC MENMy recent tales of singsongs in the H Blocks have triggered more reminiscences of other such events. Two in particular stand out. Both were after Long Kesh was burned downRióísn ReimaginedThis column gives a huge cead míle fáilte to a new musical offering Re-imagining Roísín from Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh and the Irish Chamber Orchestra, produced by Dónal O Connor.

24 Huhti 202213min