Jeff Peel's Diary

I was not raised to consider myself superior to others except in one respect: my education.  I was fortunate to be born into a family that considered that the highest form of aspiration was to be educated.  But, unfortunately, there are many families here that teach different aspirations that involve doing down those who are different. 

Education should make us question – because a good education teaches the type of critical thought that leads, naturally, towards tolerance.  I find myself judging others – not because I consider myself superior to them; but because I consider myself more capable than them of critical analysis.  I despair at the inability of the less educated to accept change and difference.  I also despair at the machismo of an undereducated, under-achieving “Loyalist” claiming superiority over a traveller eeking out a living.

The people I find myself admiring most are those who want to do well for themselves despite adversity.  People who, despite lack of education or being born in the wrong place, just want the best for their children and for their combined futures.  I feel pleased that Northern Ireland has proved to be a good place for Polish, Lithuanian, Romanian and other recent immigrants, to do well and prosper.  Moreover such people add to our culture and diversity and dilute our focus on our supposed “two communities” in which the media and our politicians insist we reside. 

And that’s why I find the scenes from the Lisburn Road where poor families from Romania are being burned out of their homes by relatively poor, uneducated ’youths’ from Belfast, so disturbing.  Poor upon poor.  One group savaging another because of mistrust, because of a perceived difference in culture, because of a failure to communicate shared values.

It’s not Northern Ireland’s fault as such.  But it is the fault of our politicians.  Naomi Long, as Lord Mayor, spoke well on the media following the attacks.  Other politicians have spoken out.  But the Us and Them mentality of this place reflects the nature of our political discourse which is all about one ‘group’ assuming a moral high ground against another.  Alliance spokespeople have been very effective at making clear that we are a common humanity sharing this scrap of land.  The least we can do is be kind to each other.  But, unfortunately, kindness is an attribute that too many families in Northern Ireland have not heard of.  And those tend to be families who see little merit in education. 

However, I must say that Naomi Long has reflected a shared repulsion at the way our Romanian neighbours have been treated over the last few days.  She deserves our respect and support.