Photo Essay: The Murals of Free Derry

In an apparent attempt to prove that they can make anything sound civilized, if not a little charming, the name the Irish have given to the North’s dreadful history of war and cyclical vengeance is simply, “the Troubles.” The Troubles are most frequently summed as a division between Catholics and Protestants, but it’s hardly that simple. It’s about politics, money, control, stubbornness, “racial heritage,” and most of the actual violence happens on the battlefield streets of public housing complexes and the main drags of the working poor. It’s also an issue of multi-generational poverty and inadequate education and it’s become so systemic that it’s hard to imagine what measure of change can really put an end to it. This is considered to be a time of peace between Loyalists and Republicans, with optimistic rhetoric offered by the politicians of both sides, but visual evidence of the Troubles lingers in the big cities of the North. It is captivating and chilling.

Such is the scene in Free Derry, the Irish Republican section of Londonderry. Derry is the site of the infamous Bloody Sunday incident, and the most spectacular and haunting visual evidence of the Troubles exists in the wall murals painted here. Equal parts memorial, propaganda and historical record, the murals are a prominent part of the urban landscape. Whether you agree with the message or not, their power and, in some cases their artistic beauty, is astonishing. Imagine yourself a child born in this neighborhood after the worst of the violence. Walking past these images every day, ten times larger than life, indoctrination would be unavoidable.