I headed up to Belfast on Wednesday afternoon from Dublin with three other Mitchells. We caught a bus and in just two and a half hours we were in a new country! While there are no passport checks at a border (the ease of violence in the north has helped this happen), you do have to use Northern Irish pounds instead of the Irish Euro. So that can be a pain.
We started off the weekend with dinner at Made in Belfast on
Wednesday night. Basically we ate in an Anthropologie store, which is just
cool. With an early morning we started out Thursday with breakfast in our hotel
(swanky and cool, the Fitzwilliam) with Eammon Mallie and Martina Purdy, both local journalists. They gave us some good background and general insight into the conflict and how it is being handled in 2012. At breakfast we heard a tone and themes that we would continue to return to throughout the
weekend, truth and reconciliation and complexity.
Then we moved on to tour Stormont. The piece of property
where the Northern Irish Assembly meet as well as where the executive is
housed. After a brief tour of the
parliament buildings we made our way to Stormont Castle to meet the First
Minister of Northern Ireland Peter Robinson leader of the DUP party and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness leader of Sinn Fein (both of these links give some insight into the critiques of both politicians). After brief introductions our group got to ask a few questions. In true power sharing style, each question got a response of some sort from both men. One of the interesting pieces brought up was support by both men to turn the former Maze prison (where most paramilitary served their time) into a reconciliation center. And just out today, a little more on that.
We ended by stepping outside for a quick photo (which I will eventually find somewhere and post).
After our time at Stormont we headed to the famous Crown Pub for lunch where we met with two scholars from Queens University who both work with former paramilitary members. After lunch we headed to the Prostestant neighborhood of Sandy Row to talk with former members of the UDA. This was the most moving part of the day. While we all sat listening, the weight of the past weighed heavy on the men as they told us their stories. It was an important reminder how time and place define us all.
Unfortunately our chat with the former paramilitary members was one sided. While the men we talked to were very fair and talked openly about how both sides were at fault, it would have been neat to hear from former IRA members. Talking with former IRA paramilitary is currently a tricky situation. There is a major issue of trust at the moment due to a case with Boston College.
We ended our jam packed day with a reception at the home of the US Consul in Northern Ireland. The reception was great and not like what would be expected from a state department reception. It was laid back and casual and almost felt like a night in college at a professor's home.
Friday was filled with more history as we took a tour of the murals of Belfast and listened to a lecture from Pete Shirlow on post-Troubles Belfast. Two interesting things happened in relation to Mississippi. First, we met Catherine Clinton at lunch. She is a historian who focuses on the American South and I read a few of her books in undergrad. With her focus on the American South it is a natural fit that she has friends at Ole Miss. Then we spent the night at a literature reading hosted by Queen's University. We heard from three different poets and Stuart Neville, a crime writer. After the readings our group posed the question about places of conflict and their role in defining identity. In the course of that conversation Stuart Neville mentioned Tom Franklin and Crooked Letter Crooked Letter. (they share the same agent) I also owe Neville a thanks, because his novel is where I stole the title for these blog posts. The Ghosts of Belfast is an easy read that combines suspense along with some historical fiction. If you don't mind some violence, I recommend picking it up.
These Mississippi connections were surprising but there were some deeper similarities with Mississippi and Belfast that I suspected I might find when I visited. Belfast is a city where place means a lot. It can determine your safety, but on a larger scale every piece of your identity. I often feel a similar way about Mississippi. It can be all encompassing over personal identity. They are also both places where the past is in a delicate balance. Both places have made lots of progress from their past, but at times it seems to be in question (just out today on this issue in Belfast). I'm still fleshing out all my ideas on how they are related, so I'll get back to you on this more eloquently at some point (also when I don't have lots of reading for class).
To finish off the weekend we spent Saturday driving to Giant's Causeway on the coast and finally over to Derry for a Saturday night showing of Carthaginians. Carthaginians follows a group that live in a graveyard awaiting the rising of the dead and all haunted by personal tragedies along with the tragedy surrounding Bloody Sunday. Sunday was spent in Derry with a quick tour then back to all of our respective homes across the island.
It was a busy busy weekend but I learned so much interesting stuff! Next up, I'm off to Berlin! More updates to come soon!
We ended by stepping outside for a quick photo (which I will eventually find somewhere and post).
Northern Irish Assembly
Stormont Castle-Home to the NI Executive
Unfortunately our chat with the former paramilitary members was one sided. While the men we talked to were very fair and talked openly about how both sides were at fault, it would have been neat to hear from former IRA members. Talking with former IRA paramilitary is currently a tricky situation. There is a major issue of trust at the moment due to a case with Boston College.
We ended our jam packed day with a reception at the home of the US Consul in Northern Ireland. The reception was great and not like what would be expected from a state department reception. It was laid back and casual and almost felt like a night in college at a professor's home.
Friday was filled with more history as we took a tour of the murals of Belfast and listened to a lecture from Pete Shirlow on post-Troubles Belfast. Two interesting things happened in relation to Mississippi. First, we met Catherine Clinton at lunch. She is a historian who focuses on the American South and I read a few of her books in undergrad. With her focus on the American South it is a natural fit that she has friends at Ole Miss. Then we spent the night at a literature reading hosted by Queen's University. We heard from three different poets and Stuart Neville, a crime writer. After the readings our group posed the question about places of conflict and their role in defining identity. In the course of that conversation Stuart Neville mentioned Tom Franklin and Crooked Letter Crooked Letter. (they share the same agent) I also owe Neville a thanks, because his novel is where I stole the title for these blog posts. The Ghosts of Belfast is an easy read that combines suspense along with some historical fiction. If you don't mind some violence, I recommend picking it up.
These Mississippi connections were surprising but there were some deeper similarities with Mississippi and Belfast that I suspected I might find when I visited. Belfast is a city where place means a lot. It can determine your safety, but on a larger scale every piece of your identity. I often feel a similar way about Mississippi. It can be all encompassing over personal identity. They are also both places where the past is in a delicate balance. Both places have made lots of progress from their past, but at times it seems to be in question (just out today on this issue in Belfast). I'm still fleshing out all my ideas on how they are related, so I'll get back to you on this more eloquently at some point (also when I don't have lots of reading for class).
To finish off the weekend we spent Saturday driving to Giant's Causeway on the coast and finally over to Derry for a Saturday night showing of Carthaginians. Carthaginians follows a group that live in a graveyard awaiting the rising of the dead and all haunted by personal tragedies along with the tragedy surrounding Bloody Sunday. Sunday was spent in Derry with a quick tour then back to all of our respective homes across the island.
Giant's Causeway
It was a busy busy weekend but I learned so much interesting stuff! Next up, I'm off to Berlin! More updates to come soon!
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