11 July 2002 The Twelfth Of July So what's been happening in Ednaworld lately? Well during the past 24 hours there's been a bomb, a paint attack on a chapel and another chapel burned down - all within a 10 mile radius of yours truly. Yes folks it's almost the Twelfth Of July, a time when all the protestants in Northern Ireland come together to celebrate our culture and heritage by aiming to do as much damage to as many Roman Catholics as we can. No, that's not fair, that's my cynical side showing. As always it's only a couple of fuckwits who spoil the fun for everyone else. So before I continue I would like to point out that I in no way condone attacking any house of worship, or attempts to put people out of business just because of what religion they are. However, I am looking forward to the Twelfth. Now I know most of you won't have a notion of what I'm talking about and it's far too complicated to explain so if you really want to find out why we have this national holiday in Northern Ireland I suggest you visit http://www.grandorange.org.uk or http://www.orangenet.org. What I will say is that despite the associations of bigotry, I do still love all the pomp and paraphanalia associated with the Twelfth. It's hard to explain to an outsider, but members of the protestant community in Ulster don't have a great deal of culture and heritage to hang on to anymore. It's not cool, and indeed it's often deemed offensive to celebrate what heritage you do have. I'm not Irish - shamrocks and St. Patrick don't hold much interest for me at the end of the day. I'm not English either, and even though my ancestors were Scottish I don't have much in common with Scottish people. I'm an Ulster protestant - the roots of my heritage only go back a couple of hundred years which is why I probably still enjoy the Twelfth celebrations. It's one of the few unique things we have; it's one of the few things we can point to and say 'this is ours'. I'll be watching Orangemen parade and know that my grandfather and generations of our family before him marched along the same route - and I'll be proud of that fact. Proud, and slightly sad, because I also know this way of life is dying out. I doubt very much if my children will be able to go and watch the same parade given that we are already being denied access to many of the traditional marching routes; each year more and more disappear. The parade at Drumcree is the best known instance of this but you must bear in mind that Drumcree is also representative of many more parades which have been banned and which are not protested about. A couple of weeks ago I was sitting in my car and across the rooftops of the town I could see the Union Jack flying above our town hall. It struck me then that there's every chance that during my lifetime, the day will come when it will be taken down and replaced with the Tricolour flag of the Irish Republic. Just try and imagine for one moment how you would feel if that was going to happen in your own country. I usually work on the Twelfth - it's part of the drawbacks to being a cabbie; you have to work while other people party, but this year I'm taking the day off and going to watch the parade in my old hometown because it may be the last chance I ever get to do so.
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