1. Shannon McKeown
Peace & Conflict: the Irish Question 1600-2012
Service Learning Summary
While participating in the Stranmillis course “Peace & Conflict: The Irish Question
1600-2012,” my classmate Sam LeCompte and I had the opportunity to participate in
service work in Belfast that exposed us to cross-community work being done in the area.
We were able to spend four different sessions with Michael George of ‘Colin Neighborhood
Partnership,’ who deals with issues concerning community safety, the environment, and
housing in the town of Poleglass. Poleglass is an area with many cross-community
intersections, and therefore has a higher potential for sectarian conflict. CNP was
established in an area that has high levels of unemployment, health and well being
problems among its residents, and an absence of resources for young people. Thus, it was
created in order to highlight and address these issues. In particular, Michael took us several
times to the Colin Allotment Project. This project utilizes an empty lot in order to create a
community garden, which serves as a therapeutic activity for many people that suffer from
mental illness in the aftermath of the conflict and was created to address the high rate of
male suicide in the area.
Michael also introduced us to the Poleglass Community Association at Sally Gardens.
Like Colin Neighborhood Partnership, this organization serves to address community
development and offers assistance to residents, from the youth to senior citizens. Sam and I
were able to talk to two men who work for the organization about their experience in the
area. Having lived during the Troubles, they understand the necessity of cross-community
work and discussed their mission of solving community issues, both of sectarian nature
and otherwise, through peaceful means. These men remain influential members of the
Catholic community and work with their Protestant counterparts in the community in
order to solve these issues, given the importance of solving seemingly small issues that
often escalate into major clashes given the issues of mistrust when living in a cross-
community neighborhood.
Lastly, we were able to speak frankly with members of the organization called
Community Restorative Justice Ireland. The origin of this organization lay in the history of
the sectarian violence in Northern Ireland. Their mission aims to develop a different way
for the Republican Nationalist community to deal with issues of crime and anti-social
behavior. They deal frequently with youth-focused issues such as car crime, drugs, and
street disturbances, often acting as mediators in solving issues between neighbors. Both
volunteers that spoke to us lived in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and offered
invaluable insight about living in an area prone to everyday violence, as well as
discrimination. They were able to answer questions from Sam and I ranging from general
questions regarding mediation and their organization, to personal insights regarding
specific events during the Troubles. All in all, the service work was an invaluable
component of the course and I am grateful to have had such a unique experience during my
time in Belfast.
