SIXTY residents from interface areas in North and West Belfast have completed a cross- community course that aims to build respect and understanding as part of a wider programme examining attitudes to peace barriers and their removal.
‘Challenging Conversations’ is an innovative nine-week course that encourages residents from Nationalist and Unionist backgrounds to explore and discuss issues such as the legacy of The Troubles, cultural heritage, politics, history, identity, flags and more.
The course is delivered by TASCIT (Twaddell Ardoyne Shankill Communities in Transition), a cross-community partnership involving four local organisations – Lower Shankill Community Association (LSCA), Twaddell and Woodvale Residents' Association (TWRA), Concerned Residents of Upper Ardoyne (CRUA) and the North Belfast Interface Network (NBIN).
Thanks to the support of The Executive Office, the International Fund for Ireland (IFI), Belfast City Council and the Department of Foreign Affairs, Challenging Conversations has successfully engaged with more than 300 residents since it began in 2018.
Over a nine-week period, residents took part in skills training sessions in different community centres on each side of the interface. They explored issues of culture and identity through educational/historical trips, including visiting the City and Shankill cemeteries to explore the diverse history of the city.
The group also travelled outside Belfast to enhance their understanding further, visiting Mid-Ulster, South Armagh, and Dublin. Each visit allowed participants to learn more about each other’s rich history and identity. Participants engaged with the GAA and Orange Order and learnt more about the Easter Rising in 1916 and Irish soldiers who fought in World War One.
Rab McCallum, TASCIT project co-ordinator said: “Challenging Conversations is not just about taking people on a one-off trip or event, it's about having a sustained dialogue on the issues of our shared and divided history, identity, and culture.
Laurence Simms, DFA, participant Angela Whelan, Junior Ministers Aisling Reilly and Pam Cameron, IFI Board Member Peter Osborne and Stephen Scott, participant
“It is not about trying to somehow change or moderate people’s strongly held views – it is about exposing them to the ‘other’ and enabling discussions to allow them to learn more about others’ perspectives on the most contentious of issues, such as legacy, identity, language, flags, bonfires and more.”
IFI Board Member Peter Osborne added: “Many divisions remain in Northern Ireland today and peace barriers bring both physical and mental challenges for communities. Thanks to projects like TASCIT, they are building trust with communities through innovative courses such as Challenging Conversations.
“By putting residents at the heart of their approach, they have been able to make significant progress around peace barriers in North Belfast. An interface that was closed for more than 40 years at Flax Street now connects communities and a new retail site and social housing is also bringing much-needed regeneration to the area.
"Challenging Conversations underpins the aims of the Peace Barriers Programme – encouraging dialogue, respect and understanding between communities who may have never met one another before if it wasn’t for the work of TASCIT.
“It is about the future where these communities can work together on their collective issues and common ambitions because they will achieve more together for their own communities and each other.”
