The Story of Moore Street

Last week the Moore Street Preservation Trust held an Urgent Public Meeting in Liberty Hall in Dublin to discuss the crisis surrounding the future development of the Moore St. Battlefield site and the threat posed to these historic 1916 laneways by a developer. 

The meeting was chaired by Christina McLoughlin who is the niece of Sean McLoughlin. He was appointed Commandant General of the Republican forces in Dublin after James Connolly was wounded. A short film by acclaimed Belfast filmmaker Sean Murray – The Story of Moore Street 1916 – and narrated by Stephen Rea was shown to very warm applause. Frank Connolly for SIPTU which supports the campaign welcomed everyone to Liberty Hall.

To Be Or Not To Be.

As this column goes to press it appears that the British PM Rishi Sunak and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission have reached an Agreement on the Protocol.  The so-called ‘Windsor Framework.’ To add to the excitement Dame Arlene Foster is giving off because King Charles is having tea with Ursula von der Leyen – a proverbial storm in a tea cup. The next few days - or longer - will see how the new Agreement goes down particularly among the Brexiteers here in the North. Remember the majority of people here voted against Brexit. Watch this space.

 Remembering Wounded Knee

On 27 February 1973 several hundred Native Americans of the Oglala Lakota people occupied Wounded Knee in South Dakota in a move intended to highlight their demand for sovereign rights. The stand-off between the Native American people and federal authorities lasted 71 days and involved daily fire-fights. Two Native Americans were killed.

Horror in Palestine and the Mediterranean

Israeli settlers danced in the street as they burned 75 Palestinian homes and killed a Palestinian man in Huwara. The plight of the people of Palestine gets worse day by day. It is an international disgrace that this is allowed to continue. Apartheid Israel is evil and inhumane. The international community must defend international law, condemn such human rights abuses and stand up for the rights of people.