Pádraic Mac Coitir shares his thoughts on the late Jim Reilly, penned shortly after his death. Jim Reilly impacted on many people of whom Pádraic Mac Coitir, a former republican prisoner, was one.
Jim Reilly was the quiet man of the H Blocks. Older and shrewder than most of his peers he was a discerning character, which left him never totally at ease in an organisation where deception was prized over perception. Despite that, his natural ability to get along with people was reflected in the diverse turn out at his Belfast funeral in March. According to a former blanket man, 'on that day republicans of all persuasions were at his funeral which shows the respect he was held in.' This was a theme echoed by another former blanket man, Peader Whelan, who wrote of the turnout as ‘indicating the esteem in which he was held.’
Alex Cavendish with the third in a four part commentary on Christmas in prison. Alex Cavendish is an author and academic: a social anthropologist, former prisoner and an active participant in the debate surrounding crime, prisons and probation. He blogs at Prison UK: An Insider's View.
My previous seasonal blogs have been mainly about how Christmas impacts on prisoners in closed prisons. However, for some prisoners who are serving their sentences in a Cat-D (open) establishment there is the prospect of being granted Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) over the Christmas period so that they can spend up to four nights at home with their families.
My previous seasonal blogs have been mainly about how Christmas impacts on prisoners in closed prisons. However, for some prisoners who are serving their sentences in a Cat-D (open) establishment there is the prospect of being granted Release on Temporary Licence (ROTL) over the Christmas period so that they can spend up to four nights at home with their families.
Alex Cavendish with the second in a four part commentary on Christmas in prison. Alex Cavendish is an author and academic: a social anthropologist, former prisoner and an active participant in the debate surrounding crime, prisons and probation. He blogs at Prison UK: An Insider's View.
In my previous blog post I shared some general thoughts about the Christmas season and the impact it can have in our prisons. This post focuses more on my own experiences of being incarcerated at this time of year.
Alex Cavendish with the first in a four part commentary on Christmas in prison. Alex Cavendish is an author and academic: a social anthropologist, former prisoner and an active participant in the debate surrounding crime, prisons and probation. He blogs at Prison UK: An Insider's View.
Almost without fail every year in the run up to Christmas one or other of the tabloid newspapers will run a feature slagging off the Prison Service for giving cons a special meal on Christmas Day. I suppose that it’s become as traditional as Father Christmas, turkey and mince pies and the Queen’s Speech. Well, it just wouldn’t be Christmas without giving the lags a good kicking, would it?
Almost without fail every year in the run up to Christmas one or other of the tabloid newspapers will run a feature slagging off the Prison Service for giving cons a special meal on Christmas Day. I suppose that it’s become as traditional as Father Christmas, turkey and mince pies and the Queen’s Speech. Well, it just wouldn’t be Christmas without giving the lags a good kicking, would it?
Pauline Mellon with a piece from The Diary Of A Derry Mother. Here she looks at the consistently inconsistent. Pauline Mellon is a social justice and rights activist in the North West.
Remember remember, the 23rd of December, deals beyond reason & thought!
This year has been so eventful that those who would normally commemorate the opening of an envelope failed to mark or acknowledge the 30th anniversary of the collapse of the infamous Gilmour show trial.
Remember remember, the 23rd of December, deals beyond reason & thought!
This year has been so eventful that those who would normally commemorate the opening of an envelope failed to mark or acknowledge the 30th anniversary of the collapse of the infamous Gilmour show trial.
Alex Cavendish from Prison UK: An Insider's View looks at the phenomena of suicide and self harm in prison. Alex Cavendish is an author and academic: a social anthropologist, former prisoner and an active participant in the debate surrounding crime, prisons and probation.
The rising number of prisoners who commit suicide whilst in custody in our prisons tends to be making the news headlines at the moment. The main reason is that this statistic – with all the human misery and pain that lies behind it – is sometimes considered to be a barometer of the escalating crisis within our jails. However, in my view it is the far, far higher number of inmates who resort to self-harm that represents the real epidemic.
Guest writer Daithi O’Donnabhain on what the Proclamation should mean to the current generation of republicans.
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| Daithi O’Donnabhain |
Sandy Boyer with news of what Saturday has in store for its listeners on Radio Free Eireann.
Radio Free Eireann will interview Martin Galvin and DeMeeko Williams of the Detroit Water Brigade at 1 pm New York time on Saturday December 20 on WBAI,99.5 FM and wbai.org on the web.
Radio Free Eireann will interview Martin Galvin and DeMeeko Williams of the Detroit Water Brigade at 1 pm New York time on Saturday December 20 on WBAI,99.5 FM and wbai.org on the web.
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| Herman Wainggai |
The different colonial history of Timor Leste/East Timor and West Papua Melanesia.
This article first appeared in the Derry Journal last Friday, December 12, 2014. The following is an interview with Martin Galvin, former Director of NORAID who recently visited Derry and spoke with some relatives of the victims of Bloody Sunday. In this piece he sets out his assessment of the Belfast Agreement some 16 years on and says that the conditions for a return to physical force republicanism do not currently exist. All photos courtesy of the Derry Journal.
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| Martin Galvin |
Alex Cavendish in Prison UK: An Insider's View explains the challenge for prisoners of concealing from a loved one the fact of their imprisonment. Alex Cavendish is an author and academic: a social anthropologist, former prisoner and an active participant in the debate surrounding crime, prisons and probation.
Although I’ve known a number of people who have died – some of them at their own hand in prison – the recent death of my father has been the first bereavement in our immediate family for over 25 years. It’s a strange feeling, not having him around even though, like many fathers and sons, we had our differences over the years.
Although I’ve known a number of people who have died – some of them at their own hand in prison – the recent death of my father has been the first bereavement in our immediate family for over 25 years. It’s a strange feeling, not having him around even though, like many fathers and sons, we had our differences over the years.
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