unionism – Peter Geoghegan

At Rory Stewart’s Cairn

By peterPosted on 8th September 2014Posted in independence, ScotlandTagged cairn, Rory Stewart, unionism

“We’re looking for the cairn.” The woman behind the counter in the Cadbury’s outlet store in the Gretna Gateway shopping centre looks slightly bemused. All around her, piled precariously high, are clear plastic bags filled to bursting with ‘Roses’ chocolates and mini-Wispas. “Any 2 for £6” declare signs in red dotted across the shop. “We’re […]

Belfast Unrest – the View from the Interfaces

By peterPosted on 20th January 2013Posted in Northern Ireland, Politics, Sunday Business PostTagged flags, Jonny Byrne, loyalism, Neil Jarman, republicanism, unionism

Belfast is often described as a patchwork quilt of conflicting loyalties. Most residents live on streets that are overwhelmingly nationalist or unionist. Imposing ‘peace walls’ physically divide communities one each another. This has long been the case on the Suffolk estate in West Belfast, where a small Protestant community of less than a thousand people […]