Tricolour

Weary People, What Reap Ye?

Extramural Activity1 Comment

“Weary people, what reap ye? Golden corn for the stranger.
What sow ye? human corpses that wait for the avenger.
Fainting forms, hunger–stricken, what see you in the offing?
Stately ships to bear our food away, [amid the stranger’s scoffing].
There’s a proud array of soldiers — what do they round your door?
They guard our masters’ granaries from the thin hands of the poor. – Speranza”

The poetry is the first few lines of The Famine Year by “Speranza”, i.e. Lady Jane Wilde, mother of Oscar.

In the centre an aboriginal figure holds the flags of Ireland and of the Native Australians.

This is one of about nine murals painted in 1995 on the Great Hunger (Visual History).

“Painted by Síle Na Gıg & St James Youth Aug 95” in St James’s Crescent/Donegall Road, west Belfast.

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Copyright © 2008 Peter Moloney
M04224 M04222 [M04223]
[M01893] Copyright © 2000 Sınn Féın

St Colmcille

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Three new murals are added to the walls of the Lecky Road underpass to brighten it up. Above, St Colmcille (St Columba) sails from Derry to Iona (Scotland), in order to start a monastery there; he founded a Derry monastery in 540. The smaller pieces show the emblem of (Glasgow) Celtic FC and a young mother in front of a (civil rights?) protest beside Free Derry Corner.

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Copyright © 2008 Peter Moloney
M03971 M03970 M03969

Ernesto Che Guevara Lynch

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“Che” Guevara’s father, also called Ernesto Guevara Lynch, was an Argentinian descended from Patrick Lynch, who emigrated from Galway (in 1742?) and married in Buenos Aries in 1749. (Based on these rodovid pages: one | two | three.) Che’s father is the source of the quote at the bottom of the mural: “In my son’s veins flowed the blood of Irish rebels.”

The Irish inscription, ‘Th[ı]ocfadh an réabhlóıdeach a mharú ach ní an réabhlóıd a scríosadh”, means (roughly) “It may be that the revolutionary is killed, but not that the revolution is destroyed.” Fahan Street, Derry. Launched October 13th, 2007 (An Phoblacht).

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Copyright © 2008 Peter Moloney
[M03979] M03980

Catalonia 300

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“Catalonia & Ireland – Saoırse • Llibertat”. Centralised Spanish rule dates back to the Nueva Planta decrees (WP) made by Philip V (shown upside-down in the first zero) between 1707 and 1716. These formed a single Spanish nation and citizenry and ended various regional identities including Catalonian.

Fahan Street, Derry

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Copyright © 2007 Peter Moloney
M03931

Defend The Raytheon 9

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“Derry Anti-War Coalition – Defend the Raytheon 9”. On August 9th, 2006, nine activists (including Eamonn McCann) broke into the Raytheon offices in Derry and destroyed computers and equipment. The trial would begin in May 2008.

See previously: Killed By Weapons Systems | One World One Struggle

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Copyright © 2007 Peter Moloney
M03854 [M03855]

Years From Now They Will Ask You

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“Years from now they will ask you where you were when your comrades were dying on hungerstrike. Shall you say you were with us or shall you say that you were conforming to the very system that drove us to our deaths[?]” INLA (sign the light-pole as well as the flags and red star in the mural) volunteer Patsy O’Hara, from Derry, joined the hunger strike on the same day as Raymond McCreesh (March 22nd) and died, 61 days later, later in the same day (May 21st, 11:29 p.m.) as him (2:11 a.m.).

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Copyright © 2007 Peter Moloney
M03851 [M03853] [M03849] [M03850] [M03852] [M03848]

Let Us Swear By Joe’s Martyred Blood

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“This plaque commemorates IRA vol. Joe McDonnell who lived in this house prior to his capture on 14th Oct 1976. Joe later died at 5.11 am on 8th July 1981 after 61 days on hunger strike in the h blocks Long Kesh. ‘Let us swear by Joe’s martyred blood never to waver of fail til the true united Irish socialist republic stands forth before the nations, a testimony to the worthiness of our case.’ Óglach calma dobhrıste. [A strong, unbreakable volunteer]”

Lenadoon Avenue, Belfast

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Copyright © 2007 Peter Moloney
M03539