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January 23, 2005
Sunday
 
 
On how a good professor made a compleat arse of himself
Dale Amon (Belfast, Northern Ireland/Laramie, Wy)  Irish affairs

I usually steer clear of 'local' stories because I will almost certainly be pilloried no matter what I say. But this is just too silly to pass up.

It seems that a sociology professor, one not from a Northern Ireland university, thinks the Red Hand of Ulster is a sectarian symbol. In most cases I would just roll my eyes and mutter about 'outsiders' who can not possibly be expected to understand a place as confusing as Northern Ireland.

This is not the case for the Red Hand. In fact, it is partly a symbol of some of my own ancestors: The O'Neill clan. The 'Kings' of Ireland. My maternal grandpa was an O'Neill and there is a wee red hand in that family coat of arms.

Now, if you please Herr Sociologist, tell me why you believe the Red Hand of Ulster is merely a sectarian Unionist symbol? Could it be you have actually never read any Northern Ireland history?

We return now to our regularly scheduled programming... and yes I do intend to post a number of photo stories from Manhattan.

Comments

Quite so Dale.

But of course the P.C. types do not want to know any real history.

And (in the case of Ulster) it is not just the P.C. types.

For example, try telling people in Ulster that the Pope wanted William III to beat James II (because of James' alliance with Louis XIV - the King of France who wised to dominate the whole of Europe).

My guess is that people of both sides will want to beat you up (at the very least).


Posted by Paul Marks at January 26, 2005 07:37 PM

Agree,
it is unfortunate that people open up discussions like that w/o checking up their facts in less "modern" sources. Many good historically precious symbols have been robbed of their original value this way.

My old family C-o-A has the Red Hand as a crest, definitely right hand of the O'Neills. We are McManus-Maguire's, living first in Fermanagh later Antrim. MMcM//


Posted by Morgan McManus at January 28, 2005 12:14 PM

I actually agree with the professor to an extent. Unfortunately both sides of our comuinity have stolen symbols from our history. With reference to our recent history of the last 30 years or so, the professor is quite correct in stating that the red hand is, or has become a sectarian unionist symbol, and may i add is flaunted as such. Its true meaning may indeed be different but not in todays world.


Posted by Sean Scully at March 15, 2005 08:29 PM
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