Peacebuilding a shared Northern Irish society
‘We have institutions to build a better future’: Bríd Rodgers by Allan LEONARD 14 April 2023 As part of its Origins & Legacies: The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement project at the Linen Hall Library, some of the protagonists of the negotiations from across the political spectrum shared their insights at The Origins of the Agreement event.... Continue Reading →
Art can transcend GFA ‘institutional sclerosis’: Paul Arthur by Allan LEONARD 13 April 2023 Professor Paul Arthur (Ulster University) suggested that the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement could be interpreted as “the end of the beginning”, when we moved from a political life of zero-sum (if you’re winning, I must be losing), to one of agreeing to... Continue Reading →
The memorials in our heads: the Im/material Monument (Gail Ritchie) by Allan LEONARD 11 April 2023 As the information sheet for Gail Ritchie’s exhibition, The Im/material Monument, points out, 25 years after the signing of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement there is no memorial to commemorate the collective dead of the Troubles. Through a series of... Continue Reading →
‘Human peace wall’ marks Good Friday Agreement's 25th anniversary by Allan LEONARD 7 April 2023 A “human peace wall” event at a Belfast interface marked the 25th anniversary of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement. About 100 people lined up from the Falls Road to the Shankill Road end on Northumberland Street, forming a line of solidarity... Continue Reading →
Citizens Wallpaper: a co-produced community visual story by Allan LEONARD 21 March 2023 Four “canvasses” of photographic images, covering the northern part of the island of Ireland, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Irish Sea, are part of an exhibition that was launched by Kellie Armstrong MLA in the Long Gallery at Parliament Buildings, Belfast.... Continue Reading →
Images of Incoming: exclusion and belonging in Northern Ireland by Allan LEONARD 8 March 2023 To coincide with International Women’s Day, the Linen Hall Library hosted an event showcasing a Photovoice project that involved over 70 women from Northern Ireland and Canada, expressing their sense of inclusion and exclusion in their new countries. Dr Federica... Continue Reading →
Book review — Refugees and Forced Displacement in Northern Ireland’s Troubles (Niall GILMARTIN and Brendan Ciarán BROWNE) by Allan LEONARD 17 February 2023 Among the imagery associated with the Troubles, occasionally you see one of a van or car overladen with house furniture and hastily assembled parcels of clothing and personal possessions. These people were... Continue Reading →
Offer of help with truth recovery process at Irish Council of Churches centenary service by Allan LEONARD 22 January 2023 The Irish Council of Churches (ICC) — an all-island body with membership from Protestant, Orthodox, Reformed, and independent church traditions — marked its centenary with a joint service of worship at St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast.... Continue Reading →
‘Ordinary People’: an exhibition of standing up to hatred by Allan LEONARD 21 January 2023 “It’s the farmer in the field, and the pilot that he finds, Hides him in his barn, till all his wounds have healed. Or the baker making extra bread, to give a starving man, Or people helping people, who they’ll... Continue Reading →
Good Friday Agreement ‘best thing that’s happened on this island in the last 100 years’: Coveney by Allan LEONARD 19 October 2022 Minister Simon Coveney TD, Ireland Minister for Foreign Affairs, resumed his speech that was interrupted by a bomb scare earlier this year in north Belfast. He was the keynote speaker guest as part... Continue Reading →
Media’s role in mediating our 'different psychic landscapes' by Allan LEONARD 18 October 2022 A set of current and former journalists shared their experiences and thoughts on the role of media and social debate across the island of Ireland. Hosted by the Irish Association, the event “Journalism without borders” attracted several dozen, including other journalists... Continue Reading →
Peace Heroines: Spotlight on Stormont by Allan LEONARD 21 September 2022 The Herstory project, established in 2016 to elevate the stories of women in national histories, launched an art exhibition at the Long Gallery in Parliament Buildings, Belfast. “Peace Heroines” features nine vibrant, largescale individual portrait paintings by artist FRIZ — women who have made an indelible mark... Continue Reading →