Belfast west

Third-Class Citizens

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2014-08-05 HughSmyth+

Hugh Smyth OBE was born in the Woodvale area and represented the upper Shankill as an Independent Unionist and then a Progressive Unionist in Belfast City Council for forty-one years, until the year before his death in May 2014, including a term as Lord mayor in 1994-1995 – he is pictured in the main image (above) in his mayoral robes.

The portrait on the right (shown solo below) was taken by Bobbie Hanvey and is kept in a Boston College archive; more from the archive of 50,000 images can be seen at BC.edu and on Flickr.

As the quote (shown in the final image below) indicates, his politics were oriented towards the working class: “Historically, Unionist politicians fed their electorate the myth that they were first class citizens…  and without question people believed them. Historically, Republican/Nationalist politicians fed their electorate the myth that they were second class citizens… and without question the people believed them. In reality, the truth of the matter was that we all, Protestant and Catholic, were third class citizen, and none of us realised it!” The board was officially launched on June 19th.

Replaces 90 Years Of Resistance.

2014-08-05 HughSmythPhoto+

2014-08-05 HughSmythQuote+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02044 X02045 X02046 canmore st 40 years’ service to the people of the shankill 1939-2014

St James Supports Gaza

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2014-08-04 StJamesFriendsPalestine+

A Claddagh ring connotes friendship (caırdeas – sadaaka), love, and loyalty, here between Ireland and Palestine. The band is composed of their two flags. The wide shot, below, shows the adjacent “Free Palestine” mural, also featuring the Palestinian flag.

Replaces a Che stencil and a Cliftonville-Celtic mural

2014-08-04 StJamesFreePalestine+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02041 X02040 Path to peace free palestine

Freedom In Arabic

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2014-08-03 McQuillanResistance+

“Oppression breeds resistance”, in the form of Leila Khaled and an IRA gunman, and a clenched fist in the colours of the Palestinian flag. This is a new pro-Gaza mural in McQuillan Street with Irish “Tıocfaıdh ár lá” [our day will come] and Arabic “يومنا قادم” [our day is coming] (and in the shields “Saoırse” and “حرية”[freedom]).

The artist is DD Walker (“Rebel Rebel”), who painted the “Against Established Law” Che Guevara mural last (2013) October which this replaces.

2014-07-25 ArabicLá+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02038 X02026 erin

Flag Protest

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2014-08-03 IsraeliFlagSwastika+

Here are two images of modified Israeli flags, protesting the incursion into Gaza. The first, above is on the Divis tower and shows a tricolour flying next to an Israeli flag with swastikas. The second, below, is from Monday’s protest march outside Belfast City Hall and shows a young girl covering her eyes beneath an Israeli flag covered in red (bloody) hand-prints.

2014-08-06 IsraeliFlagBloody+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Leila Khaled

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2014-08-03 HugoStGaza+

Palestinian icon Leila Khaled, who took part in aeroplane hijackings in 1969 and 1970, is featured in this new mural pro-Gaza mural in Hugo Street. The central portrait is a replication of a famous photo by Eddie Adams (WP), taken after her first skyjacking; she then underwent plastic surgery to disguise her identity prior to the 1970 attempt (WP | see also minute 30 of the 2005 Swedish documentary on Khaled).

Khaled is also featured in the pro-Gaza mural in McQuillan Street: Oppression Breeds Resistance

This mural replaces the right-hand side of Think Independently.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02035 Hugo St palestine flag AK-47 saoirse freedom popular front liberation

The Popular Front

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2014-07-28 ArabicPhoenix+

The ‘Vote Tommy Doherty’ portion of this RNU mural on Northumberland Street (Visual History) has been replaced with a pro-Palestinian message – a clenched fist in the colours of Palestine between the emblems of the RNU and the Popular Front For The Liberation Of Palestine.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02029 arabic tıocfaidh ár lá our day will come
يومنا قادم

Kieran Doherty

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2014-07-28 DohertyFull+

Kieran Doherty died on this date (August 2nd) 1981 after 73 days on hunger-strike. The new mural above depicts scenes from his funeral on 1981-08-04. The portrait of Doherty in the top left replaces a similar one in the same location; the plaque at the portrait’s top-right corner remains from before. The angled panel shows Doherty’s parents, Alfie and Margaret.

Below are two details – the hearse and the volley – taken in early July but at that time largely complete. At this time, the (in-progress) mural drew criticism for featuring masked gunmen (BBC |  Tele). Finally, there is a shot of the whole wall at an early stage.

There is video of the launch on youtube.

The photograph on which the central panel is based is by Derek Spiers; see also this set at hungerstrikes.org. The volley took place outside the Doherty family home in nearby Commedagh Drive (Belfast Media).

2014-07-10 DohertyHearse+

2014-07-10 DohertyVolley+

2014-07-03 DohertyWideInProg+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02030 X02017 X02018 X02016 vol. kieran doherty t.d. oglaigh na heireann age 25 commenced his hunger strike on may 22 and tragically died on sunday afternoon 2 aug 1981 was elected by the people of cavan and monaghan in their support of the prisoners campaign for political status bobby sand francis hughes raymond mccreesh patsy o’hara joe mcdonnell martin hurson kevin lynch thomas mcelwee michael devine we support the hunger strikers it is not those who inflict the most but those who endure the most who shall conquer in the end terence macswiney

You Dare To Call Me A Terrorist

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2014-07-28 JoeMcDonnell+

Joe McDonnell was a Provisional IRA volunteer (óglach) imprisoned in the Maze H-blocks. He was the fifth hunger-striker to die, on July 8th, 1981 after 61 days. The Wolfe Tones wrote a ballad in his memory (for their 1983 LP A Sense Of Freedom), which FAI chief John Delaney was recorded singing in a Dublin pub a few weeks ago (November, 2014) after a 4-1 win by the Republic over the US in a friendly. He at first denied it was him, then apologized, and has kept his job (Guardian).

As of this morning (December 10th, 2014), the song, re-released by the Wolfe Tones as a charity Christmas single in aid of the Simon Community, is the #7 single at itunes.ie.

The mural above was painted in July by Gerard “Mo Chara” Kelly, on the Suffolk Road, Andersonstown, west Belfast.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02033 long kesh while you look down your gun h5