| Description | Interview with Jerry Mallet. He discusses developments that have happened since Charles Parker and Dilip Hiro last spoke to him, particularly the violent incidents that occured during the 12th August 1969 Apprentice Boys march and for the next few days. He describes the reaction of the police and the B Specials, the barricades erected in the Bogside area and the elapse of time before the army was sent in. He estimates the number of people who took part in the procession, talks about the different Orange Order lodges that participate and the procedures followed during the celebrations. He thinks that 'Paisleyites' have infiltrated several lodges, and discusses the initiation ceremony for Apprentice Boys. He points out that the original Apprentice Boys movement during the siege of Derry included both Catholics and Protestants and thinks that if the Catholic community in Derry prevented people from undergoing initiation in Derry then the movement would collapse. He goes on to talk about some of the religious attitudes of his mother's generation and the intolerance of his mother's relatives, and explains that his mother was a Protestant who became a Catholic. He describes how he was influenced by their views about the differences between Catholics and Protestants and the separation of the two communities, and how his views changed when he joined the army and met people from different religious and political backgrounds. He returns to a discussion of the incidents that took place during the 12th August 1969 Apprentice Boys march, the throwing of stones by young people and the sealing off of the Bogside area by the police. He explains how people went about their daily lives during the weeks following the disturbances, the escalation of violence in Derry and Belfast, the expulsion of the police by the community and the arrival of the troops. He remembers asking about the parades as a child and being influenced by the perspective of older people that the Protestant marches were designed to remind the Catholic community that they were in charge, attending dances at Memorial Hall despite being warned by the clergy that attendance would be giving money to the Orange Order, and the difficulties for Catholics who married Protestants. He goes on to talk about most people accepting what they were told in childhood, which leads to bitterness, and the importance of individuals forming their own opinions (tracks 1-11).
Total: 32.09 mins
Dubber's reference number: PLA KF565D0077980 |