A shortage in low-income housing is highlighted in the #buildhomesnow campaign which has put up lots of small boards (such as the one in the image below, on Divis Street) and the mural shown above, which is in the New Lodge. The site of the old Mackie’s factory is one particular location the campaign says could be redeveloped. (See articles from BMG and Participation & Practice Of Rights.)
If you’re downtown early in the morning, you might bump into the gents who “clean the streets”, not in the sense of picking up litter but rather in the sense of graffiti (and chewing-gum) removal. They are shown here wiping out “Abortion rights now!” and “Jail the bankers” in Library Street (perhaps from the Workers Solidarity Movement – see the third image, below)
For more information on the removal process, see the first Now You See It.
Three more images from the recent electoral season. Political parties were putting up hoardings and posters everywhere, such as Sınn Féın’s “Vote” ad (next to one for the rock-band Busted on their ‘Pigs Can Fly’ tour) and the DUP’s use of the spectre of a nationalist first minister as a reason to “keep” Arlene Foster and colleagues. Above, however, the watch-word is “stop”: “Want change? Stop vot[i]ng”.
Sinn Féin have been over-run by money and lost touch with the community, according to this Ardoyne banner: a boot arrayed with Euro and Sterling signs tramples on the Sinn Féin symbol. “Say No to budget cuts! Say No to welfare reform. Community.”
Stanislaw Sosabowski — who appears in the apex of this new mural in east Belfast — survived the first World War (fighting for Austria-Hungary), the occupation of Poland in 1939, and escaped from a prisoner-of-war camp before crossing Europe and taking command, in Britain, of the 1st Polish Paras. The unit fought in Operation Market Garden at the Battle Of Arnhem. (WP | Polish Heritage Society for a booklet of text and images)
His memoirs have been published as Freely I Servedand interviews about his service were collected for a film called A Debt Of Dishonour (youtube) – the title comes from the fact that Sosabowski was blamed for the failure of the Operation, perhaps as a bargaining tactic in negotiations between Britain, Russia, and Poland.
Across the middle of the mural are airmen from the 303 Polish Squadron, which was celebrated in a Shankill mural last year: Love Demands Sacrifice. In the foreground is a modern British paratrooper in field gear.
For images of the launch last week, see WWIIPolesNI.
On April 15th, 1989, 96 Liverpool football fans were crushed to death against steel fencing around the pitch at Hillsborough stadium in Sheffield. On Tuesday (April 26th), an inquest found the police “grossly negligent” and that the fans were “unlawfully killed”. It also refuted allegations that fans had entered the ground illegally, and were drunk and unruly, and a variety of other claims made in The Sun and The Times about bad behaviour during the event. (Guardian | WP)
According to the Irish News, the simple tribute on Black Mountain of the number 96 is a collaboration by West Against Racism Network (WARN) and the West Belfast Liverpool Supporters Club. The materials were borrowed from Gael Force Art.
The flyers above (on an electrical box in east Belfast) have been damaged not by time and the weather but by deliberate human efforts to remove them, one by scoring and the other by peeling. The sentiment expressed – that adapting oneself and the community to the influx of foreign nationals — or at least its public expression, is thus controversial in the area.
Disclaimer in the window of The Seedy Side Of Town in Haymarket Arcade: We are not able to give any growing advice, so please do not ask. Seeds are sold as souvenirs. Germination of seeds is ILLEGAL under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Be informed before you purchase. By purchasing, you are indicating that you have reached the age of 18, and are aware of the law. You also waive any liability towards The Seedy Side of Town if you act outside the law. We are not trying to persuade anyone to break the law.
Here’s a patronising slogan from the Cupar Way “peace” line, complete with peace/anti-nuclear symbol. Also visible: “Be kind; don’t hurt”, “United, all win”, “Praying for peace in Belfast”, “Love one another”, “Trust and compromise” and so on.
Extramural Activity 