Allow me to give the briefest of summaries regarding the creation and developments of Northern Ireland (credit to Rick Steves), especially for those of us who only remember a few news stories from the 90s:
1600s: England starts strategically "planting"Protestant English and Scottish to help assimilate Ireland into British economy.
1921: Ireland wins its pseudo-independence, but only 26 of the 32 counties join the Irish Free State.
1949: Republic of Ireland leaves British Commonwealth to become fully independent, six northern counties (only ones with Protestant majority) remain part of the UK.
But within those six counties, many Catholics (35% of population) living who feel disaffected.
"Unionists" describe those who want to remain part of Britain, "Nationalists" want all 32 of the Irish counties to be united.
Many forms of anti-Catholic discrimination are adopted, leading to the Troubles that plagued the region from the 1960s to 1990s.
1960s: US Civil Rights movement inspires Catholic minority to begin nonviolent struggle to end discrimination, but extremists polarized issues and things turned violent.
Unionists are afraid that if the island became a unified nation, relatively poor Republic of Ireland (the south) would drag down Northern, and that the high population of Catholics would lead to repression of Protestants.
1969: As things become more violent, British Army enters initially as peacekeepers, but then becoming the muscle behind the Unionist government.
1972: More than 500 people die (men, women, and children) as a result from petrol bombs and guns. A more violent IRA (Nationalist) emerges.
1968-1998: more than 3,000 people killed in Northern Ireland.
1990s: Ireland's EU membership and increasing economy, and the Catholic Church's lessened influence, lead to an easing of tension and
1998: a ceasefire is signed.
Today, there aren't bus hijackings, or checkpoints, or chaos on the streets. But there is still underlying tension and unresolved grief.
1600s: England starts strategically "planting"Protestant English and Scottish to help assimilate Ireland into British economy.
1921: Ireland wins its pseudo-independence, but only 26 of the 32 counties join the Irish Free State.
1949: Republic of Ireland leaves British Commonwealth to become fully independent, six northern counties (only ones with Protestant majority) remain part of the UK.
But within those six counties, many Catholics (35% of population) living who feel disaffected.
"Unionists" describe those who want to remain part of Britain, "Nationalists" want all 32 of the Irish counties to be united.
Many forms of anti-Catholic discrimination are adopted, leading to the Troubles that plagued the region from the 1960s to 1990s.
1960s: US Civil Rights movement inspires Catholic minority to begin nonviolent struggle to end discrimination, but extremists polarized issues and things turned violent.
Unionists are afraid that if the island became a unified nation, relatively poor Republic of Ireland (the south) would drag down Northern, and that the high population of Catholics would lead to repression of Protestants.
1969: As things become more violent, British Army enters initially as peacekeepers, but then becoming the muscle behind the Unionist government.
1972: More than 500 people die (men, women, and children) as a result from petrol bombs and guns. A more violent IRA (Nationalist) emerges.
1968-1998: more than 3,000 people killed in Northern Ireland.
1990s: Ireland's EU membership and increasing economy, and the Catholic Church's lessened influence, lead to an easing of tension and
1998: a ceasefire is signed.
Today, there aren't bus hijackings, or checkpoints, or chaos on the streets. But there is still underlying tension and unresolved grief.
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