Featured News

November 19, 2023
German Remembrance Day at Glencree 2023
November 19, 2023
In Memory of Heinz Kampes
November 14, 2023
Ciarán Toland SC to Chair Glencree Board
November 9, 2023
Policy Explained: A Guide to Brexit, The Protocol & The Windsor Framework
Being selectively informed, we become selectively ignorant and increasingly unable to appreciate the extent of our own ignorance

 

by Barbara Walshe

10/6/2020: It is painful and hard to watch what is happening in the United States at the moment, not just the anger and justified outrage at the public killing of George Floyd but the rage, despair and visible pain of a people confused and divided. As we in Ireland have discovered to our cost, a sustained ignorance of, and failure to address, fundamental issues of concern leads in only one direction: conflict and violence.

So, as we watch from afar, the pain and anger in another country, what experiences can we share and what are our challenges on the island of Ireland?

At a time of attack and defend politics in Europe and North America, and the polarisation between people that has resulted, what we have learned at Glencree from over 40 years of dealing with conflict is the importance of dialogue. Dialogue means listening to understand people or groups, often with strongly held views on complex issues. It means getting to grips with the underlying issues that cause fear, anger, humiliation and anxiety, and helping people work to address these issues. It sounds easy, but too often we default to our institutionalised point of view without really listening at all.

In recent years, the constructive impact of debate and activism has diminished as public rhetoric becomes riddled by polarised assertions and demonised stereotyping. Modern day debates tend to be characterised by anger and anxiety and a free for all atmosphere, with few genuine questions being asked or answers listened to. Evidence to support a conviction is selectively remembered. Ignorance and deceit in the actions of the ‘other’ is selectively searched. Our democratic values suffer as we gravitate to people who share our views and to media representations that present us with ‘the offensive other side’. Being selectively informed, we become selectively ignorant and increasingly unable to appreciate the extent of our own ignorance.

At Glencree, a strong emphasis on listening to different traditions in conflict helps get a fuller understanding of another’s perspective and builds relationships, bridges, compromises, and solutions. This does not occur in a vacuum, it requires preparation, the creation of a safe, respectful space for all where people feel secure to explore their fundamental concerns helped by skilled facilitation.

Ireland is now home to people from 150 countries around the world. Respecting this diversity, our deeply held opinions, biases, and prejudices, of which we are often blissfully unaware, need ongoing interrogation and work. This also includes the need to question deeply ingrained institutional and organisational bias often disguised as culture or ‘the way we do things around here’.

The transition policing has made and continues to make in Northern Ireland is an example of what can be done to secure greater police legitimacy and the rebuilding of relationships with, and within, conflict-affected communities. With measures that have ranged from changing the symbols of the police, to embracing the principles of inclusion, impartiality, accountability and effectiveness, and the implementation of community policing, things have come a long way.

The events in the United States remind me of sitting next to a young African American man in a maximum-security prison in Milwaukee many years ago who could not believe that our police force was mainly unarmed and accepted by communities. We cannot take that acceptance for granted as our communities become more fractured or more diverse. A large investment will need to be made in the excellent Community Policing Service to help police remain close and connected to our new communities and increase their sense of inclusion and belonging.

“If we cultivate the habit of considering both—or even several—sides of a question, as [Nelson] Mandela did, of holding both good and bad in our minds, we may see solutions that would not otherwise have occurred to us. But the reward, as we can see in the case of Mandela, is something that can fairly be described as wisdom.” Richard Stengel

Barbara Walshe is Chair of the Glencree Centre for Peace and Reconciliation

 

 

More News

November 21, 2023
Coffee & Collaboration – Next Event: 6 Dec, Register Now
JOIN US FOR OUR UPCOMING VIRTUAL COFFEE & COLLABORATION Wednesday 6 December 2023, 1 –  2pm via Zoom Glencree Women’s Leadership Programme hosts a monthly virtual ‘Coffee & Collaboration’ event for members of the Glencree All-Island Peacebuilding Network and women involved in the activities of the programme. This monthly series […]
November 15, 2023
Peace Book Club
Next Event: Tuesday 28 November 2023, 1pm. Book for review: ‘Think Big’ by Dr Grace Lordan Advance Registration Essential In early 2023, Glencree Women’s Leadership Programme launched the ‘Peace Book Club’ for members of the Glencree All-island Women’s Peacebuilding Network and participants engaged in the Glencree Women’s Leadership Programme. As […]
October 19, 2023
Chuck Feeney – An Appreciation
17/10/23: A Tribute to Chuck Feeney
October 2, 2023
Mediation Training Workshop
18/11/2021
September 15, 2023
Glencree Annual Report & Financial Statements 2022
Annual Report 2021
September 15, 2023
Annual Report & Financial Statements 2022
Click to view & download
August 28, 2023
Glencree Welcomes MERL Manager To The Team
August 22, 2023
Sanctuary Hillwalkers Team Up With Glencree To Walk As One
August 1, 2023
Glencree Celebrates National Heritage Week – Open to Public, 12 Aug 11-12.30pm

June 10, 2020

OPINION: Dialogue Not Tear Gas – How the Irish Experience Can Help the U.S. Right Now

10/6/20: "Being selectively informed, we become selectively ignorant and increasingly unable to appreciate the extent of our own ignorance." says Barbara Walshe, Chair of Glencree
June 26, 2020

OPINION: Ireland secures seat at UN Security Council table

26/6/20: Barbara Walshe, Chair of Glencree comments following Ireland's successful bid for a seat on the UN Security Council
October 4, 2022

Glencree CEO Naoimh McNamee, Irish Times Opinion