March 2025 – Paddy Duffy Collection

The Rising Of The Moon

2025-03-302025-04-18Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

This RNU (Fb) board features the closing words from Sands’s prison diary, from March 17th, 1981:

“They won’t break me because the desire for freedom, and the freedom of the Irish people, is in my heart. The day will dawn when all the people of Ireland will have the desire for freedom to show. It is then that we will see the rising of the moon.”

In the corners, funeral volleys are being fired over the coffins of Kieran Doherty and Joe McDonnell, two of the deceased 1981 hunger strikers who were local to the area. For background information, see the board that this one replaces: To Whom Do We Owe Our Allegiance Today?

Bingnian Drive, Andersonstown, west Belfast

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Copyright © 2025 Paddy Duffy
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Solidarity With Gaza Health Workers

2025-03-262025-04-07Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

In this graffiti outside the Royal Victoria Hospital, west Belfast, a person in a white coat faces a tank bearing an Israeli flag. Israel’s renewed bombardment of Gaza on March 18th killed more than 400 people (Independent), including an OB-GYN specialist in Rafah (Al-Jazeera); on the 23rd, an airstrike on Nasser Hospital killed five (Reuters).

Detailed figures of casualties among health-care workers in Gaza can be found at Healthcare Workers Watch.

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Copyright © 2025 Paddy Duffy
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An Camchéachta

2025-03-262025-04-18Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

In Irish, the seven bright stars of the celestial group Ursa Major are together known as “an céachta” or “an camchéachta” – the bent plough, though the reason for the modification “bent” is unclear (Vıcıpéıd). (In other cultures they are thought of as a wagon/wain, or dipper, or the hind-quarters and tail of a bear.)

The “starry plough” flag was originally proposed in 1914 for the Irish Citizen Army and flown over the Imperial Hotel during the 1916 Rising (WP); it is now the symbol of the INLA/IRSP (web) and many current anti-Agreement groups,

The starry plough shown here, in Cliftonpark Avenue, north Belfast, has the correct number of stars – seven – but has lost its typical shape.

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Copyright © 2025 Paddy Duffy
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Cuımhnímıs!

2025-03-262025-04-12Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

“Honour Ireland’s dead – wear an Easter lily”. This year (2025) is the ninetieth anniversary of the founding of Cumann Uaıgheann Na Laocradh Gaedheal, Béal Feırste (the National Graves Association, Belfast (Fb)) which maintains the graves of about 149 republicans in Milltown Cemetery (Belfast Media).

The graves under its care are marked with a red hand – for an example, see the grave of Joseph (Joe) Malone in Far Dearer The Grave Or The Prison.

This new mural, which features a Celtic Cross (emblem of the Association) and Cú Chulaınn (symbol of republican dead), is part (along with Free Palestine) of the side-wall next to Éırí Amach Na Casca. Easter Monday, this year, is April 21st.

Beechmount Avenue, west Belfast

March 23rd:

March 18th:

March 16th:

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Copyright © 2025 Paddy Duffy
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Cheers!

2025-03-222025-04-09Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

Here are three boxes in a row in Ann Street, with a toast to city-centre revellers by Zippy (web). For more city centre boxes, see Pink Moon Gonna Get You All, and for more on the painting of boxes in Belfast, see the Visual History page.

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Copyright © 2025 Paddy Duffy
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Wear Your Easter Lily With Pride

2025-03-182025-04-21Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

These Saoradh (web) boards calling for attendance at the national march from Creggan to the new (2022) “People’s Monument” in Rossville Street are in Hugo Street (above) and Beechmount Drive (below):

“National Republican Commemoration Committee national Easter commemoration: assemble at Creggan shops – 2pm Monday 21st April 2025 for march to the People’s Monument — Free Derry Corner. Wear your Easter lily with pride.”

For a full list of this year’s commemorative marches, see Republican News.

Easter Monday falls late this year – April 21st – though still not as late as it did in 1916, when it was on the 24th. The event is typically celebrated at Easter, regardless of its proximity to the 24th, though for the centenary in 2016, anti-Agreement republicans commemorated the Rising on April 24th, specifically, while others paraded at Easter (which was at the end of March).

For the Finucane board, see Pat Finucane.

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Copyright © 2025 Paddy Duffy
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Wildstroke

2025-03-162025-04-09Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

The painting of electrical boxes began in earnest in Belfast in 2019 with the Belfast Canvas Project. The idea was also taken up in CNR west Belfast, though without the support of the Belfast Canvas Project.

The five shown here are in North Howard Link, Glen Road, Glen Road, Edenmore Drive, and Springhill Drive and the latter three reflect the ‘community’ theme that the boxes have had in CNR west Belfast – “deeds not words” is the motto of St Teresa’s primary, the second is from De La Salle secondary, and the last is of falling-down buildings (perhaps) inspired by the bombing of Gaza.

The first two (above – artist unknown – and immediately below – by Perla Mansour (web)), however, don’t fit with this theme and are more akin to the ape on Broadway and the abstract lines/clouds in Iveagh St.

For more on the painting of boxes in Belfast, see the Visual History page.