December 14, 2004 - page 2

In the Irish Political Thought class I’ve been taking here this semester, we’ve spent the last few weeks discussing the modern issues of Irish Republicanism and Unionism. It's still complicated and sectarian tensions continue, although violence has mostly subsided as leaders are being held accountable for their actions.

A lot of the issues surrounding the ‘Irish question’ are cultural ones. In Belfast, there is definitely Irish culture, but it’s not as strong as it is in Dublin, for example. Trying to define who can be included as the ‘Irish nation’ is the main crux of the problem. There are Unionist parts of town (marked by orange flags) and separatist parts, and these are clearly defined. There are Catholic parts and Protestant parts. I also learned over the course of my stay that there are sectarian bars, restaurants, and movie theatres. Politics clearly plays a role in everyday life here, and if you ask any of the Irish students about it, even the shyest ones are sure to have a strong opinion and are anxious to share their views. I’m glad I was able to spend enough time here to sort of get a feel for the politics of the area because it's so easy to misunderstand the issues when you're removed from them. It will be interesting to watch and see what happens in the future.