Derry-Londonderry

            Derry is a walled city, originally named Dura by Saint Columba. Dura comes from the Gaelic for “oak leaf,” which is also the symbol of the city. Derry was plagued by civil war and sectarian conflicts during the Troubles. People have made significant steps toward peace although prejudice still exists. This can be seen even in the city’s official name, Derry-Londonderry, a combination of the Nationalist and Unionist opinions. Around the city we noticed that there were UK and Irish flags, thus showing the continuing search for identity. The city’s minority Protestants are in power over the majority Catholics; Catholics were forced to live in the poorer bog side of the river while the Protestants lived on the fertile lands on the other side. This divide led to significant tension and fighting between Catholics and Protestants. These tensions culminated on 31 January 1972, commonly known as Bloody Sunday; British soldiers opened fire on a peaceful protest, killing 14 people and wounding 12. 

(Several lampposts in Derry had the tricolor flag of the Republic of Ireland painted on the bottom.)

            One of the most fascinating parts of the city was the series of murals painted on the walls of buildings by the Bogside artists: brothers Tom and William Kelly and their friend Kevin Hasson. When we arrived, Brian gave us a magnificent tour of all of the murals.  The murals were painted to tell the story of the city without a political agenda.  There were 12 murals total, but we found 3 particularly powerful: “Death of Innocence,” “The Petrol Bomber.” and “The Oak Leaf.” 

“Death of Innocence” depicts a young girl named Annette McGavigan who was shot and killed by a British soldier in 1971. She was the 100^th victim of the Troubles. She was outside because she needed to gather rocks for a school project, and the British soldiers had to kill one more person to fulfill their quota. This was the sole reason why young Annette was killed that day. There is a broken gun on one side, which symbolizes a call for peace. A butterfly and crucifix are symbols of rebirth. This portrayal of Annette stands for all the innocent children who were killed during the Troubles. Kelly thought it was cool that the original artist painted the gun whole and the butterfly in black and white, with the intent of coming back later to fill in the butterfly and break the gun in two only when peace had been reached. This is how we see it today.

(The artists did not paint in the butterfly or break up the gun until 1997.)

            The next mural that impacted us was “The Petrol Bomber.” This mural shows the Battle of the Bogside in 1969. During the Battle of the Bogside, local people resisted British attempts to take down the barricades that they had put up to protect themselves. This mural depicts a young boy wearing a gas mask and carrying a homemade bomb. Brian told us that the boy was 12 years old at the time and is still alive today. One of the artists said, “This was our first mural and thought to be our best. As soon as the three of us painted it, we knew we had captured something of the spirit of the Bogside”. 

(Brian told us that the boy in this mural still remembers that day.)

            The last mural that we thought was striking was the last one in the series, “The Oak Leaf.” It is a multicolored checkerboard of 42 squares with an outline of a dove and oak leaf in white. The oak leaf is the city’s symbol, and the dove symbolizes peace. The mural shows the dove flying towards the lighter colored squares out of the darkness. It was designed by local school children. Kelly liked how the dove and oak leaf were intertwined, symbolizing hope. Erica thought it was cool that a city that has had so much trouble and heartache could still have so much hope. Bridget appreciated the colors and what they symbolized.

(This mural is the last one in the series.)

Derry is significant because of its history of violence and the process of reconciliation. The people have been through so much, yet they choose not to forget but instead to show the world what happened and why it was important. We think it’s cool that people from all over the world come to see this city and learn from this relatively recent struggle that still applies to people today.