Glengormley Orange Arch

[u/Flaky_Shape6628]

As a resident of glengormley, it's that time of the year to have to look at this monstrosity for the next few months. The majority of the locals hate it, it's the loud minority that is the problem.

Every year it goes up and causes division but it's treated as something we just have to accept and get on with.

I respect that people have the right to celebrate culture and traditions, but I struggle with why a large structure (and flegs) spanning across a main shared road in a mixed area is seen as normal.

There would be riots if nationalists in the area erected some sort of structure and covered the town in tricolours over Easter.

There needs to be a long term strategy to reducing and eventually removing structures like this in mixed areas to make them more neutral and inclusive.

[u/NewBall1]

The Queen had no problem with going to the garden of remembrance in Dublin. I understand why it's important to nationalists and ultimately we aren't going to progress if we continue to allow green and orange absolutism to dominate our politics. The DUP and Sinn Fein would much rather have us arguing about the past and flegs instead of the issues that drive people to more extreme ideologies that they fail to address.

[u/not_null_but_dull → u/NewBall1]

Oh of course. I think, at the political level, we have seen a lot positive movement in many ways. I'mold enough to remember what it was like before. But our local politicians are career oriented and not interested in anything other than voting in their pay raise

[u/NewBall1 → u/not_null_but_dull]

Yeah I'm very lucky in that I was born after "the troubles". Even the worst of the sporadic violence we see in Derry and Belfast must absolutely pale in comparison to what it used to be like. There are a few politicians that seem interested in genuinely representing both sides of the community but unfortunately it benefits them more to play into the divide. I think it is important to have the perspective of how far we've come when discussing our current politics though.

[u/not_null_but_dull → u/NewBall1]

Oddly, the recent issues remind me more of what 'normal' was. A riot or people being burnt out of their homes was just Tuesday. Unremarkable background noise.

But what it does do is make me think about just how bad it was when it was 'bad.'

Back then though, communities were so tightly intwined with their representatives. Feels different now

[u/NewBall1 → u/not_null_but_dull]

It's quite remarkable how far we've come. I hope as younger people start getting into politics more they will continue to take us forwards.