Above is another piece of the multi-panel work by Gerard Kelly (“Mo Chara”) at the top of Springhill, showing a forearm in the colours of the Palestinian flag with a fist clenched around a strand of barbed wire, causing blood to drip down.
Previously from the same set: Hellfire | Palestine Abú | David & Goliath | Man Against Machine
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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02140 gaza israel palestine
The Disney princesses (Snow White and Princess Anna, the younger sister from Frozen) are being watched, not just by the wicked witch, but by the communications tower on the Springfield Road barracks. There are two close-ups below, one of Ariel and Snow White, the second of Anna. The mural is new work by a local artist and local children in the Slıabh Dubh estate.
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Last Saturday (2014-11-08) saw the launch of a new mural in Ballymurphy Crescent, celebrating local IRA volunteers and community workers.
The doves at the top of the mural are in the style of Robert Ballagh’s “Legacy Of The Hunger Strikes” though there are 12 doves here rather than 10. Marty Lyons holds a copy of Ballagh’s piece in an image below, along with an image on which the halberd and pistol around the beret and gloves in the bottom of the mural are based – the rifles of the original are absent. (Possibly by Patrick Magee, the Brighton bomber (WP) – please confirm by e-mail or comment.)
Left-hand portraits (counter-clockwise from top): Eileen Gray, Margaret Campbell, Annie Adams, Kathleen Moore, Lizzie McGivern, Joe Reid, Rosaleen Russell, Mary Armstrong, Agnes Robinson, Eileen Reid.
Standing (l-r): Fra Toner, Gerry Campbell, Liam Mulholland, Paddy Tier, Sean Connolly, Michael Kane, Liam McParland, Sean Doyle, Cllr. Sean Keenan, Pat McGeown.
Squatting/Kneeling (l-r): Jim McGrillen, Francis Toner, Jr., Jimmy Duffy, Tony McAlister, Billy Carson, Cormac McArt.
The main figure is (and remains from the previous mural) Tommy “Toddler” Tolan, who escaped from the Maidstone in 1972 and served time in the cages at Long Kesh. (See Lost Lives entry #1956 and An Phoblacht.) In the original (2001) version of the ‘Safe House’ mural, he was dressed in fatigues (image at CAIN), but this was changed within 18 months to a brown suit (image at CAIN | detail at ExtrAct), similar to the way he is portrayed here.
The mural took some time to complete — the fifth image, below, shows one of the artists on a scaffold with #stoptorycuts on Slıabh Dubh in mid-October — partly because more and more figures were added.
Update 2014-11-26: In an unusual move, the launch of the mural was advertised by a board (rather than flyers), in this case at Dorothy Maguire Corner on the Whiterock Road – see the final image, below.
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X02348 X02401 X02349 X02290 X02287 X02288 X02289 X02403 the mural was unveiled by johnny doc 8th november 2014 remember our volunteers committee an trá ghearr abú
This new work in the Somme memorial Garden Of Reflection (between the Shankill graveyard and the Mountainview Tavern), places two headstones (both reading “A soldier of the great war”) in a flower-bed, in front of a mural. The mural shows a soldier, presumably from the Ulster division, on the fields of Flanders: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. 1914-2014”
Previously from the Garden: Reflections On The Somme | Somme Memorial; and from the graveyard: Queen Of Ireland, Empress Of India | Interment
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Yesterday’s symbolic vote on Catalonian independence (for more background see Votes About Votes) showed 81% in favour of separation from Spain. Here are three shots of the encouragement on Slıabh Dubh (Black Mountain), the second with the Ballymurphy Easter Rising mural in the foreground, the third with the wall of superheroes in Slıabh Dubh estate (see Wallbusters | The Walls, Unbroken | Red-Eye | Cartoon World).
Previous messages on the mountain can be seen on its Visual History page.
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This graffiti on the hoardings around the building-site at the top of Woodvale Road is in reference to the on-going dispute at Twaddell Avenue, which is just to the right of the PSNI land-rover in the right of frame – each night Orange bands march up to the police line, attempting to march past the Ardoyne shops and finish a parade from the Twelfth (of July) 2013.
See previously: Civil Rights Camp | Twaddell Protest Camp | Supporters Club
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The 7.5 million people of the Spanish region of Catalonia will go to the polls on November 9th for a vote on independence, though it will no longer be a referendum but a non-binding ‘consultation of the citizens’. Indeed, the Spanish government in the last 24 hours has begun taking steps to block even that vote (Reuters). The “Catalan Countries” are Catalonia, Valenicia, and the Balearic Islands, along with Andorra and the French region of Rousillon – see the WP page on Països Catalans for greater detail.
The Catalan mural was painted on top of the mural to blanketman Kieran Nugent (and Brendan Hughes) (seen here in Belfast’s Infamous Prison) which caused some consternation. As can be seen below, Nugent is now being painted into the hunger-strikers mural (Peace With Justice) along with Mairéad Farrell, who led the protest in Armagh Women’s Prison.
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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X02310 X02319 yes to the referendum for independence for catalan countries catalans want to vote
October 23rd marks the anniversary of the bombing of Frizzell’s fishmongers on the Shankill Road, above which the Shankill UDA and LPA had their headquarters. The bomb exploded prematurely, killing nine people, including the owner and three members of his family, and one of the IRA bombers (also memorialized, by a plaque in Ardoyne), and injuring 57 others. The meeting whose attendees were the intended target had ended early. The memorial includes a cross of poppies and an engraving of the (old) exterior – the memorial is on the wall of the new building (shown below), the old one having collapsed as a result of the bomb. (WP)
See previously: Where Is Our Truth? which (in one of its panels) reproduces the scene after the bombing.
For the original (top) plaque by itself, see M07536.
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X02155 X02157 1.05 pm saturday 1993 terrorist John Sharon McBride Leanne Murray Michael Morrison Evelyn Michelle Baird George Gillian Williamson Wilma McKee Thomas Begley Seán Kelly
The Maze/Long Kesh was set ablaze by Republican inmates 40 years ago, on the night of October 15th, 1974. Above is a picture by Matt Kelly, who was held in Cage 18. The picture is in the Eileen Hickey Republican Museum on Conway Street.
Previously: The Maze Ablaze (includes background information)| Long Kesh At Night | Eileen Hickey | You Know Where
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The (UK) Conservative Party has proposed a series of cuts, including a freeze of child benefit, income support, tax credits, dole, and housing benefit. These are opposed by various parties and advocacy groups in both Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The mural above is on the Divis Street international wall, while Black Mountain/Slıabh Dubh currently carries the same message: #stoptorycuts. Protest rallies were held today (2014-10-11) in both Belfast and Dublin.
Replaces (part of) The Big Plan
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X02255 X02276 X02275 stand up fight back stad na cıorruıthe join sınn feın
Extramural Activity 