Setting the unionist cat amongst the cultural pigeons: Nelson McCausland on why unionists ignore culture at their peril
The Gransha Suite at La Mon Hotel had obviously been packed with DUP Conference delegates for the previous session on Challenges in Policing when I eventually arrived earlier this evening. PSNI Chief Constable Matt Baggott was still giving a few interviews to the press while a Lambeg Drum was being set up on the other side of the stage.
Nelson McCausland was up next, addressing DUP delegates as a dedicated follower of culture and MLA, rather than as Minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure.
He started by defining culture as “cultural traditions, heritage and sport”, saying that these were the things that “give us a sense of place, a sense of community and a sense of belonging”.
For the past two years, children at some schools have been learning the fyffes fifes and drums. Some pupils from Belfast Boys Model School then got up to demonstrate their skills.
At this point turn the volume of your computer up loud and click play below. (MP3)
Nelson’s pitch was that a city like Belfast was “no longer an industrial powerhouse” so “we need to look in new directions for the economy”. He singled out creative industries, cultural tourism and cultural industries as examples.
There is an argument that UK and Ireland are now so reliant on service industries and the knowledge economy that we’re doomed. In a post-recession economic wasteland, people who can produce things will be king. Thinkers and tour guides will be forming a queue at the expanding number of dole offices that will be sprouting up on street corners like Starbucks franchises. So Nelson’s mileage may vary …
What brings people to Northern Ireland for a holiday? It’s not going to be the sunshine.
Nelson suggested that more could be made of existing tourist sites to draw in foreign visitors. He pointed to America’s love for 7th President Andrew Jackson and suggested that the Andrew Jackson Cottage near Carrickfergus should erect a flagpole, fly the Stars and Stripes and advertise to Americas onboard cruise ships as they sail into Belfast Lough to dock for some shopping and sightseeing. The speculated that the Ulster-Scots Academy [which I think is the same body as the Ullans Academy?] could “produce a exhibition and an experience that is accurate, authentic and entertaining”.
Successful Ulster golfers bring overseas business to NI golf courses. Calling it “Team GB” means that we miss the opportunity to be included in the branding – Nelson favours switching to “Team UK”.
James Gamble, co-founder of Procter and Gamble, was born near Enniskillen and educated in Portora Royal School. Why don’t we connect with the Ulster diaspora?
The lecture then changed to look at Irish culture. Rather than looking for best practice and successful ideas from that sphere, Nelson quickly turned to critique the politicisation of Irish culture, going back to the late 19th century Gaelic revival and quoted a line from a 1982 speech by a Sinn Fein cultural officer Patrick McCreevy who said
“Every phrase you learn [in Irish] is a bullet in the freedom struggle.” (Padrig O’Maoicraoibhe)
It’s a subject Nelson has touched on before, including in a letter to the Belfast Telegraph in July 2007. Sinn Fein’s “cultural war” is serving to strengthen the nationalists community and at the same tie undermining unionist community (by demeaning unionist culture and trying “to convince unionists that they are really Irish).
With a decade of centenaries just around the corner, he challenged how the Northern Irish angle of the 1916 Easter Rising [link to a post on Nelson's blog] might be celebrated in 2016. He mischievously explained that the northern rebellion consisted of Denis McCullough the president of the Irish Republican Brotherhood taking 150 followers on the train to Tyrone. Reaching Dungannon they met Patrick McCartan, leader of the local Tyrone volunteers who wanted reassurances that the Pope had given his blessing to the rising and that German guns had arrived in Kerry. They turned around and headed back to Belfast. McCullough accidentally shot himself in the hand on the journey home. “Not much to celebrate” suggested Nelson.
Within the “broad church” of unionism, Nelson identified historical characters worth celebrating: Francis Hutcheson, Lord Kelvin and Amy Carmichael. He quoted the 1975 Bullock Report and its assertion that “no pupil should be expected to … live and act as if school and home represent two totally separate and different cultures which have to be kept firmly apart”. Catholic schools and their embedded cultural teaching seemed to be the one area where Nelson felt unionist could learn something. After all, if a school in a nationalist area could put on a play about Robert Emmet (an Irish rebel) …
For any cultural or linguistic tradition to thrive, it needs to be in two places. It needs to be in the school where it is affirmed and validated and passed on; but it also needs to be there on the media. And the question is are we getting a fair share of cultural expression from the community that we belong to in terms of BBC, UTV and the other channels. There are issues there we take up and are still taking up with the BBC.”
He finished by referring to the lack of unionist cultural content in the Belfast Festival at Queens.
Too often we have allowed our cultural traditions to be marginalised and excluded. And in many ways there is still a cultural establishment where unionists are under-represented and therefore it is easy for those organising events programmes festivals to forget about us or to ignore us. And that’s something we need to challenge.
As an example, he pointed to the absence of crowd-drawing gospel concerts from the festival programme. [Update - Nelson has now blogged about cultural inclusivity and gospel music in particular over on The Minister's Pen blog.]
Was quality an issue? In an ad-libbed remark, he went on to say
I did point out that one of the star turns in the Queens Festival this year was Hugo Duncan. So I reckoned that if Hugo Duncan was of high enough standard for the Queens Festival I think we should be all right.
Guess who’s not going to get a Christmas card from his Uncle Hugo this year!
Overall, quite a different approach to the spirit of openness and shared exploration voiced by Nelson’s party colleague and ex-leader Lord Bannside at the Columbanus Celebration earlier this week.
The full audio (MP3) from the 35 minute session is available if you’re interested.
Topic: Politics, Society and Culture
Region: Ireland, Northern Ireland
John,
The rather condescending nonsense continues. The fundamental problem is your assertion that the Ulster identity is a regional identity of Ireland rather than the UK. That is simply not a position agreed to be many unionists. Just because you keep peddling what is far from an accepted fact (outside nationalist circles) does not make it a fact.
It is far from absurd for unionists to deny their Irishness. The land mass is indeed called Ireland. However, you fall into the trap of one land mass: one group. Alias is actually the best at the explanation so I will steal hies: there is a British nationality and an Irish nationality on the landmass of Ireland. You may regard yourself as part of both: that is fine. However, others do not and that is not absurd; is not worth of your ridicule it is an irrelevance. It is not threatening you at all.
Moving on by your logic Canadians should regard themselves as North Americans. That may be a geographical fact but it is not the primary means by which they self identify. They may even reject being Canadians if they are from Quebec but that is a separate issue.
I worked briefly in the Outer Hebrides when I was a student and it was interesting that many of the islanders did not regard themselves as Scottish (much to the chagrin of Scots nats from Glasgow who were there). Their position was not a nonsense.
Your last paragraphs betray what I suspect are your true motivations: bashing the DUP. The fact that you reduce culture to being a stick to fight intra unionist rivalries is actually rather pathetic.
Incidentally you still have not explained nor apologised for your slur that I do not get the Union bit in unionist. You are in danger of suggesting that your identity is the correct one for a unionist and any other one is at best odd, most likely inexplicable and potentially simply wrong.
John,
Forgot to add re the Canadian thing. The reverse is also true. Americans living in Hawaii are not remotely the less Americans and most probably do not self identify as Pacific islanders.
Culture and identity is much more complex than you are pretending and it is largely an individual thing. To suggest otherwise or to ridicule or pretend a lack of understanding of another’s culture simply because you disagree is actually highly intolerant.
anonymous,
You show how little you understand Presbyterians (or Protestants). Due to the priesthood of all believers we are accountable to God ourselves and have no mediator other than Christ. As such I must read the scriptures and decide for myself the truth. I may listen to others like ministers but I am accountable for my soul to God and cannot hide behind anyone (apart from the blood of Jesus). as such my analysis of what God wants is the only open to me (after study, prayer etc.). Hence, in a way evangelical fundamentalist Protestants are the original post modernists.
I have no need of or benefit from a priest of mediator. Indeed anyone who presented him or herself as such would by definition by ante-Christ (rather than anti Christ).
Im not irish.
My father happened to be a protestant, unionist and also a member of the GAA, his culture was irish, his identity british.
Minister McCausland cannot deny the fact that he is in fact irish, nor can i deny the fact he is British. The same for turgon, you may not agree with that position but it is a fact that you are irish and id argue more irish than you would like to admit culturally.
ill leave a quote from my dad about minister mccausland
‘id call him a political dinosaur but he denies dinosaurs ever existed’
Then no one born in the British isles can say they are not British.
http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/…/britishisles.htm – Cached – Similar
Someone should tell the Irish.
Turgon
I think you need to define better what this British Ulster identity is.
What are its origins, who are the participants and where does it fit into British and Irish history.
I have laid out which I feel is a pretty logical case for Irish Unionism which post partition has understandably translated into Ulster/Northern Irish Unionism.
I have illustrated that shared Irish symbols – St Patrick, Celtic Cross, Harp, Shamrock and elements of the Gaelic language are at the heart and foundation of northern unionist institutions – church, military, loyal orders and even the national football team. The Harp is an equal part of the British Royal familiy standard putting Ireland not Ulster at the heart of the Kingdom
I have also highlighted the fact that the idea of Britishness itself derives from the Union of the people of England, Scotland, Wales and originally Ireland and hence it is totally logical that a British citisen sees him/her self within that context. A US citisen in Hawai see themselves and US and part of the 50th State at the same time – unless they are from one of the other 49 and just residing there.
I am an Irish unionist opposed to Separatism and Home Rule – and I see the plantation as simply adding to the mix of what constituted the Irish family living on this island.
My view is the Union should never have been broken up and Ireland – north and south – would be a very much better place had it not. Indeed I have little doubt the UK would have benefited. The alternative is the madness of the last 90 years and the dead end to which it has undeniably brought us.
Where a separate British Ulster mindset fits into all this is a mystery to me ?
When unionists say they are not Irish not only are they denying their own birthright but they are effectively stating that they are usurpers living in a country not their own and stating that the only true Irish identity is the Catholic and Gaelic one.
As I say just saying you arent Irish but British living in Ulster needs a bit more explanation than what you and Nelson are currently proposing. You can tell me what you arent but you havent told me what you really are.
i was saving this actual point for whenever someone asked me was i british, damn you lamhdearg.
Its true, people born in Ireland are Irish, British and European..
That doesnt mean they have to owe allegience to an english queen or parliament though
John,
Can i ask you to please stop making logical arguments, this is Northern Ireland, such things have no place here!!
I need something to disagree with you on!
APU
Well you can disagree with Turgon and Nelson if they ever beef out what it is they actually think they are rather than telling us what they arent !
something just made me chuckle, Nelson’s last post was 12.02am, Blogging on the sabbath!!!!!!
for shame
John i am an ulsterman, a bit like a palestinian or a basque the fact there is no country named after us (ulster) people is irrelevant.
The Two Nations Theory is of course the most subversive and hateful thing for nationalists, especially as it was reformulated by a Cork man, Brendan Clifford, in a series of Athol Street/BICO pamphlets from 1970 onwards.
They broke left wing certainties on the rightness of republicanism and undermined the IRA campaign.
Essentially they took the ‘Ireland is an island and therefore a nation’ dogma and broke it.
The salt water theory of nationalism remains strong but never now goes unchallenged outside its Irish believers at least. Unfortunately they still constitute the vast majority of nationalists who substitute rage for argument, including most on this site.
Clifford’s view, using Stalin’s definition as a guide was that the Ulster Protestants were definitely not part of the Irish nation. They were British, but conditionally so, and if the circumstances required it had all the makings of a separate nation on the island themselves.
He has a very slow connexion. He is in the DUP after all.
If you asked a Canadian “What are you?”, he would say “Canadian.”
If you asked him “So, are you North American?”, he would likely say “Well, yes.”
If you ask McCausland what he is, he says “an Ulsterman.”
If you asked him “So, are you Irish?” he says “No! How dare you?!”
These two things are not the same. The real question, I think, is not ‘What is being an Ulsterman?”, it is “Why are you not Irish?”. To put it another way, why is it not enough to say ‘I am Irish, but my Ulster Protestant background is the important thing about me’?”
I would like a good answer from someone, since it currently seems like it’s an elaborate attempt to prove we have nothing whatsoever to do with our neighbours; that we should take to our separate schools, music and language and do our best to ignore any ‘Irish’ culture as if it were a inherently alien and incomprehensible.
I believe the Ulster Protestant culture is important and interesting precisely because it stands on the threshold of many different things, and has a complex identity and relationship to others. To make it a culture which cannot admit to elements of its identity and which pretends to be entirely alone is to damn it to a sort of endless drum-beating stagnation.
John,
I am afraid I do not need to define this British Ulster identity. It is all around us. Very many unionists recognise it. You are simply being perverse if you claim not to see it.
All the above from you is your idea of nationality. You feel the need to explain and rationalise it as above. That is fine. However, it is nothing more than your ideas. I adhere to very similar yet subtly different set of allegiances. Mine are not any more inherently accurate or inaccurate than yours.
Indeed the whole concept of nationality etc. is a bit illogical and indeed a construct of more recent times. That does not make it all wrong but it does mean that in this case your view of a logical position is merely that: your view.
I might suggest that you claiming to be a unionist opposed to Home Rule is utterly illogical. I very much doubt you were alive during the Home Rule issue and claiming your identity on the basis of an issue from a hundred years is not that logical. Drawing inspiration from it may be logical but it is all about feeling and emotions. As such for you it is logical to be opposed to Home Rule. For me it is a past and now dead issue and hence, not logical to base much of my identity on.
You say I have not defined what I am but that is simply an untruth. Both myself and Nelson have suggested identities. Mine is an evangelical pretty fundamentalist Protestant, a husband, a father, a son, an Ulsterman, British etc. etc. All of those are completely valid. I suppose I could add Irish to it if I wished but I do not identify myself as Irish and so do not.
An Phoblacht Abu – now come on, that would make you a Pharisee!
[It's my fault we're on the uncomfortable ground of religious affiliations, so I'll say that I'm an atheist with no religious upbringing and a mostly Catholic/part Protestant family background]
Saying that you decide for yourself what the truth is is not the same as saying there is no truth, only your decision. Correct me if I am wrong about this, but you believe that there is objective truth in scripture (for example, that there is a Yahweh-like God, salvation and damnation exist, people can be saved by faith alone.) You respect the right of someone else to read the same scripture differently, and I am sure you also respect the right of other people to believe in Buddhism or Islam. That does not mean you think their opinions are correct where they differs from yours, does it?
To bring us back to the original analogy, like everyone else here, you recognize the right of anyone in NI to call himself British, Irish, or both. I think you argue that whatever identity someone chooses to take is not just legally or ethically available to him, but actually equally descriptive of reality. I’m not really sure whether I agree or disagree with that, I’m just trying to make sure that all assumptions are examined
Fair play to Blair for agreeing to debate Hitchens on religion – he got his head handed to him for trying, though. Many have tried…
Nelson
Fair play…but that was a very long time ago. I’m not sure what validaity you think any former nationalist ambition to ‘culturally absorb’ has currently ? Who or what would be being absorbed and to what end exactly ?
Also, how different is your Britishness from, say, a native of Leeds, or Southend, or Dundee, or would you say that those cultures are, apporoximately, as similar to one another in some ways as they are different in others ?
Thanks
NOTA
the difference is the Leeds and Dundee guy wouod also say they are English and Scottish but Nelson would only say he is British. He might say he is British Ulster – but the legitimacy of that terms has not been defined,
The obvious answer to your question of course is that the only difference is that our Britishness derives from our Northern Irishness which itself derives its legitimacy from Ireland’s original Union with GB,
This British Ulster stuff is geographocally and politically inaccurate and has no basis in history.
John East Belfast
The first part of your answer’s fair enough, I do think though that nationality is only one aspect of culture and identity. One of my issues with NMcC’s approach is he routinely attempts to weld one aspect of identity, artificially and for entirely political purposes, to others.
The Ulster Protestant identity also bleeds into the other parts of Ulster that you may consider not “true Ulster” but have an provincial identity within the republic which is all it’s own. Cavan, Donegal and Monaghan are like the rump that seems to irritate those when Ulster is questioned as a valid shorthand for Northern Ireland. I’m not going to argue the fact since Ulster has been realistically solidified as the de facto term. But it is wobbly territory to make definitive statements when you look at an Ulster Protestant living in the Republic happily with loyalty to the Republic’s institutions. Muddy the already swirling waters
It would be impossible to respond to all of the errors and misunderstandings in the comments from some of the contributors. Time would prevent that. Nevertheless I have found this thread very interesting in that it shows the sort of ideas that some people have on such issues. I have therefore decided to run a series of posts on the theme ‘Culture Matters’ on my own blog ‘Nelson’s View’ http://theministerspen.blogspot.com exploring aspects of culture and identity in Ulster.
Nelson
Thanks for the link.
When you say that Irish nationalism and Irish republicanism is intolerant of those cultural traditions, are you referrring only or mainly to Orangeism ?
If you are making a point that that alleged intolerance is broader than that then for me you appear to be interpreting their advocacy for ‘their’ culture to be an attack on yours or an intolerance of it and projecting that accusation of intolerance rather than welcoming culture diversity as a good thing as a matter of principle. That loyalist Paisleyite parochial zero sum game demagogy is or should be something which the DUP puts very firmly behind it once and for all. After all, it’s ultimately based on scapegoating, vicious, rabble-rousing sectarianism and pure political opportunism. The tiny lumpen TUV and BNP political support bases are both very responsive to it.
I have read through a number of the posts and certainly agree that someone from Northern Ireland can decide what nationality they are whether that is British or Irish but to try and pretend you have no Irish connection at all is laughable especially if your ancsestors arrived here hundreds of years ago. America was mentioned earlier and is the perfect example as in theory the only ‘true” American is the native american but the reality is all the German Americans, Irish Americans, English Americans etc are all proud Americans.
If all the migrants to the UK followed Nelsons example and declared themselves Chinese, Indian, Polish etc for the next 400 years then it wouldnt be long before British people were in the minority in Britain – that obviously wont happen because people just as in America when they arrive in a new country they take on the cultures and traditions of that country to a varying degree. I cant imagine too many young people in Britain whose parents immigrated from India for example completely denying they are British if thats where they were born they would class themselves as British, British Indian or British Asian. So if everyone else in the world can do it why is it so difficult for Nelson and co.
RepublicanStones
Thanks, caught it. Blair was brave enough to go into bat on religion with Hitchens but was gubbed. How come you refer to Hitch as a git, are you religious by inclination and or are you pro-Saddam/pro-Taliban ?
John East Belfast
I’m not quite sure you’re right about the distinction between the UUP and DUP on this although in some ways I hope we’re both wrong about that.
I personally see the UUP as an irrelevance now – it has no idea what it’s about, scratching around for inspiration, no leadership, not even a worthwhile leader, resolutely undiverse; doesn’t seem quite sure whether to try and outflank the DUP to the right or to make – for them – a big bold leap to the centre, isn’t quite sure whether to redefine unionism in more pluralist, indeed materialist terms or to stick with cretinous flag-waving and claiming that more and more non-protestants are ‘ok with our brand of unionism’. Their pseudo-integrationist flirtation with the Tories benefitted them none and appears not have taught them anything either.
I personally couldn’t care less if they evaporated entirely today or tomorrow – given their unlovely history it would be something of a deliverance for this state – but insofar as there needs to be a rivalry within unionism I’m not sure I wouldn’t prefer the DUP to make the running on this issue. The DUPes aren’t right about much (I literally broke the habit of literally a lifetime recently be agreeing with Robbo on soemthing – education) but isn’t afraid to take bold steps and its grass roots prefer that than the empty, banal, tuppence halfpenny moribundity it finds within the UUP.
I think that Nelson is way more wrong about this issue than he’s right but I figure in any case that he’s untypical of the less reactionary wing of the DUP (many of whom view Nelson’s take on identity and culture as amusing and/or embarassing) but it’s not beyond them to rise above this tired tweedle-dee tweedle-dum parochialism.
Im sure our Minister for “Culture and Sport” will be as upset as I am that about 25% of the competing teams in the 2012 Olympics have registered for training facilities……but none of the 51 registered to train in Norn Iron.
Eamonn McCartan Head of the Sports Council said “Northern Irelands image is the problem”. Well perhaps Olympic cyclists training for games opening at the end of July dont want to cycle past the Ardoyne shops in mid July to watch the annual riot. Or perhaps training for the Olympic marathon in and around Shaws Bridge (excellent facilities there) would be curtailed by large numbers of men with bowler hats.
Indeed I see no reason why Orange “culture” could not be accomodated in the Opening Ceremony along with Morris Dancing.
All is not lost……one Olympic team held a recent seminar for potential athletes in Newcastle, County Down last month.
It was…..the Irish team.
Guys. Whatever you call yourselves, whatever church you go to, whatever language you speak, you are all from the same place. Face it – the rest of Britain isn’t that bothered about northern Ireland, and neither is the republic. If the 6 counties/ulster/the north of Ireland is going to get out of the recession, become fair and shake off the cobwebs of violence and paramilitaries you are going to have to agree on something and stop arguing. This fanatical loyalism/nationalism is getting old now. As an English republican, raised as a protestant and confirmed as a catholic, I find it really frustrating. Both sides have one thing in common which they don’t share with either the rest of Ireland or the rest of Britain. We care about the north. So if northern Ireland is going to have a bright future then we all need to work TOGETHER to acheive it. Because no one else will and it’s making us look stupid.