NORTHERN IRISH IS WHAT I AM

Kyle Pott (Boys Model, Belfast)

Well being brought up in a loyalist area I was told by my parents and family that I was British however I began to challenge this almost forced identity and began to search for heritage. This lead me to a YMCA Youth and Government Course which was advertised in my AS level politics class. I have really enjoyed myself at the course and on the 1st till the 3rd of Feb 2008 we went on a trip to Londonderry to learn about the Bog Side and the Troubles which went back to the Plantation of Ulster, which saw the Native Irish driven from the land and homes and saw them replaced with Protestant British citizens.

More recently the formation of N.I Civil Rights Campaign leading to marches and Riots, then the RUC being forced out of the Bog Side of Derry. We saw colourful murals across many a wall and one which really got to me was a mural of a young girl who was shot on Bloody Sunday while walking home from school. There is a butterfly, which was painted in black and tied down to stop it flying until there was peace and now it has been repainted in bright colours and is flying high. However our guide had a Republican agenda and had a hostile view towards Britain and this made me a several others feel unwelcome. Luckily for me the group has a strong dynamic so I told the leaders how I felt and they reassured me that his view was a dying one and I was welcome in Londonderry.