Abstract
Mulvenna seeks to examine if Catholic social and political attitudes towards Protestants, Unionists and Loyalists have changed throughout the course of the ‘Troubles’ and the ‘peace process’ eras. He posits the view that the debate has been reversed from two generations ago, and it is now Protestants who feel socially, economically and politically bereft in a society where republicanism is making significant cultural and political strides. As both communities talk of equality and inequality in a post-Brexit landscape, the chapter assesses the factors that have contributed to these discourses.
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- 1.
Particularly Sinn Féin and its supporters, as the largest nationalist/republican party.
- 2.
I do not find the use of the PUL or CNR labels to be satisfying, but given the brevity of this chapter and the question being about the two main blocs in Northern Irish society these acronyms will be used in some instances.
- 3.
MOPE is an acronym for ‘Most Oppressed People Ever’.
- 4.
It is notable that many of the members of this group are Sinn Féin supporters. Indeed, Dominica McGowan signed election nomination papers for Máirtín Ó Muilleoir.
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Mulvenna, G. (2018). Meet the New Boss…Same as the Old Boss; Assessing Republican Attitudes Towards the Protestant, Unionist and Loyalist Communities in Northern Ireland. In: Burgess, T. (eds) The Contested Identities of Ulster Catholics. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78804-3_12
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