City/Town

Winter’s End

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Shown are the White Witch (Jadis) and two wolves, Maugrim – Captain of the Secret Police – and Vardan (from the movie adaptation). The piece is called “Winter’s End” however, because Jadis’s reign over Narnia – the winter of 100 years – is under threat from Aslan the lion.

The piece is by Friz (web | tw). The two images below are in-progress shots from March. For the metalwork in the top right, see Chains & Ropes. The corner – which is typically beset with cars – is in Townsley Street/Manderson Street, Belfast, next to CS Lewis square.

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Ulster Supports The People Of Israel

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In response to the protests at the soccer match between Northern Ireland and Israel (described yesterday) the poster above appeared in the Village: an Ulster Banner with the 6-pointed star (for the six counties) turned into a Star Of David.

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Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions

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Northern Ireland last night beat Israel 3-nil in a soccer “friendly” at Windsor Park. Gael Force Art took to Sliabh Dubh (Black Mountain) to support Palestinians and the BDS Movement, saying there’s “nothing friendly” about Israel’s human rights record (the full GFA statement is here).  Other protests – and counter-protests – took place elsewhere in the city (BelTel).

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Welcome To The Jungle

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Dee Stitt of the UDA resigned last week as chair of Charter NI citing the strain on his family caused by negative media attention (BBC-NI | Irish News). At the end of 2016, Stitt was criticised for remarks describing his North Down Defenders (tw | Fb) as the “homeland security” of the area and describing working-class estates as “jungles” in which there is always a “big guy” (Guardian video 8 min mark ff.| BelTel | ITV) . The mural above does not directly indicate ties to the UDA/UFF, except for the red fist. For a more explicit NDD board further down the estate, with UDA, UFF, UYM, and LPA flags, see North Down Defenders.

For the recent tension between UDA factions in north Down, see Ulster Defence Unions.

Replaces the mural to VC winner Sir Edward Bingham.

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Loyalist Prisoners’ Aid

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Flying in a stiff breeze above the Glen estate, Newtownards, are an Ulster Banner and the flag of Loyalist Prisoners[‘] Aid, welfare group for loyalist prisoners. The fundraising album of UDA songs was removed from Spotify and iTunes in 2017 (Irish News) but is still available on Amazon.

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Head Examined

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A crude anatomy of the loyalist brain by TLO, with modules dedicated to Buckfast (tonic wine), flying our flag, The Sash, 1690, killing all taigs, and Saving Ulster From Sodomy. DUP councillor called the poster “a hate crime” (Guardian).

Side-by-side with: Ian Paisley Jr as The Crawler.

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Ruling By Fooling

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The line “Yes, ruling by fooling, is a great British art – with great Irish fools to practice on” comes from a piece by a James Connolly article in The Irish Worker in 1914. It is used here in the context of what the “Good Friday [Agreement] has delivered: the copper fastened partition through the consent principle & triple locking border poll provision; gerrymandering using peace walls for population control; 70% Protestant, 100% unionist police force; internment by remand; revoking of licences; and miscarriages of justice; sectarianism; total polarisation of mindset; 18 peace walls in 1998 59 peace walls in 2018; sectarian allocation of social housing; almost 500 lives lost to suicide.” In contrast, 32CSM declares that the Declaration Of Independence (in English | as Gaeilge | it was also translated into French) by the Dáil in 1919 is “the only mandate the Irish people need”.

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Available Here

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On the right of this image there is a European Regional Development Fund plaque (dating back to at least 2008) but we do not have any record of a previous piece in this spot (Main Street, Conlig). It is not likely that it is referring to the Red Hand Commando board. Please get in touch if you have any information. See also the UVF board on the Today’s Local in the Glen estate, Newtownards.

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The Proclamation

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Robert Ballagh’s 1916 Proclamation was first painted as a mural by Mo Chara Kelly and Rısteard Ó Mhurchú in 1991 for the 75th anniversary of the Easter Rising (see Cáısc 1916 which also contains the Ballagh piece). That version stood for ten years on the Whiterock Road. It has reproduced again in Ard An Lao above the hunger strikers, after the removal of several plaques (see All Our Dead). “With special thanks to Hugo Óg Wilkinson”.

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X06110 our revenge will be let there be no bitterness

Resurfacing

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The Blair Mayne mural in Queen Street, Newtownards, which dates back to 2008, has fallen down, revealing the remnants of mural it replaced, a UVF firing party (J1754). A UDA flag, however, has been placed on the mounts.

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