Breaking With the Past

Until very recently, Northern Ireland was plagued by the "Troubles", a conflict that raged between two opposing traditions-Protestant Loyalists and Nationalist Catholics. Intolerance passed from one generation to the next, perpetuating the cycle of violence. Since 1998, there has been an uneasy peace, and now some young people and their families are working to break with the past.

Colin's Story

As 15-year-old Colin McRory guides us into his dimly-lit, closet-sized computer room, adorned with posters of the Queen Mother and dangling newspaper clippings, he exudes the calmness and self possession of a gentle spirit. However, he admits that he was raised to hate. He recalls visiting "flashpoints" where Protestant boys would gather to pick fights with Catholics, throwing stones and punches as a way to pass time. Today, as the articulate, freckled redhead, talks about the future, he does not sound like a boy who was raised to hate. Colin, who is a Protestant, imagines that when he finally marries, his wife might be a Catholic. His father, Alfie, admits that not so long ago he would have disowned his son for such talk.

Colin lives with his family in one of the most contentious areas of Belfast: the top of Shankill Road on the Protestant side of a "Peace Wall," which divides his neighborhood from the Catholic area. At a point along the wall, the Catholic homes are on one side of the street, while Protestants reside on the other. To an outsider, the people and houses look the same. Yet the locals only see the differences. Even today, when walking home from school, Colin is careful to keep to the Protestant side of the street. One time when he strayed from the Protestant side, a group of Catholic kids beat him severely.

Colin was barely five years old at the time of the infamous Shankill bombing. History has recorded it as the largest loss of life in a single incident since 1987. Ten people were killed, including the bomber and 57 were injured. The unionist Irish Republican Army claimed responsibility for the bombing but said the bomb was not intended to kill civilians; rather it was meant to detonate during the meeting of rival unionist group Ulster Freedom Fighters, located above the fish shop where the blast occurred. The loyalists retaliated immediately by killing two Catholic civilians. By the end of the week, they killed 12 more Catholics.

Colin and his family were especially affected by the Shankill bombing. Alfie, Colin's father, was in the area of the fish shop when the bomb exploded. Both Colin and his mother knew that Alfie could have been one of the casualties. Amid the carnage and mass confusion, Colin's mother searched desperately for his father who was frantically rescuing the wounded. As he lifted one injured person out of the wreckage, Alfie wondered why the man was wearing surgical gloves. The victim was taken to hospital where he fully recovered. Later, the family learned that the man with the gloves was not only a Catholic. He was the bomber.

The McCrory family paid a heavy price for Alfie's role in "helping a Fenian." Ostracized by their own people, they became a target for retaliatory violence. The family lived in fear. Every morning, they checked the car for bombs. At night, they locked every window and door, inside and out, including the bedrooms. During the night, Colin had to wake his father to check the house if he needed a glass of water or wanted to use the bathroom. The Troubles had made the McCrory family prisoners in their own home.

Years of tension and violence took their toll. The hatred was destroying their lives of the McCory family. Alfie realized that if his son was to have any future, they had to break with the past and change their attitudes.

What's Next for Colin?

In Northern Ireland, most Protestant and Catholic children go to separate schools, a system, which perpetuates entrenched beliefs. Integrated schools encourage children on each side of the conflict to learn to get along. Though a 2003 poll showed that 82 percent of the Northern Ireland population supports integrated education, only 16,500 students or 5 percent of school age children attend 50 integrated schools. Colin is one of them. He made a bold decision to attend Hazelwood Integrated College.

At Hazelwood, discussions about religion and politics are encouraged, where normally such conversations would end in violence. Students are given the chance to explore what they have in common and examine their differences in a supportive, non-violent environment. In short, they find ways to get along.

But most children do not have the chance to overcome traditional attitudes and beliefs because parents keep their children in segregated schools. Colin and his father are committed to change and the teenager has clearly benefited from his time at Hazelwood. His is confident and talks positively about his future. If other parents like Alfie McCrory let their children form their own opinions and break from past attitudes—even if they don't agree with them—there can be change in Northern Ireland.

What Can You Do?

Begin by learning more about what the UN and other organizations are doing to combat intolerance. UNHCHR and UNICEF work to alleviate the impact of the type of violence that has plagued Northern Ireland and other conflict-torn communities around the world. UNICEF's MAGIC program offers ways for individuals and groups to use the media to publicize the rights of children, and UNCORE pairs the United Nations University with the University of Ulster in order to promote understanding between the factions in Northern Ireland.

Other organizations offer tangible ways to get involved. The Anti-Defamatory League; Court TV's We Are Family program; Survivors of the Shoah Visual History Foundation; and Operation Respect all work towards curbing intolerance directed at various groups. Most of these organizations offer lesson plans, activities and videos that help people build the future that Colin envisions.