Kevin O'Kelly speaks to Alex Scott, his family and friends, all of whom live on the Shankill Road. They give their views on the Pope, Catholics, civil rights, the Northern Ireland government and keeping their own religion.
Their attitude to the present crisis is formed by their experience of living in the Shankill area and their religious views. The Scott family and friends talk about the divisions that exist between the Shankill and the Falls Road. They talk about the prospect of being governed by Catholics, which is not something they would like. They feel that whoever is in power does not really matter to the people. They argue that what people are concerned about is keeping their own religion. They discuss their impressions of Catholicism, the power of the Pope, and birth control.
They are all in agreement that Captain O'Neill's visit to Dublin was the starting point of the trouble. One man describes O'Neill as a "traitor" for protestants. They also discuss the benefits to Catholics of being part of the North Ireland and the United Kingdom.
The topics covered are similar to the discussion that took place on the Falls Road between O’Kelly and a Catholic family.
| Title: | Northern Ireland A Film Special |
| Clip Duration: | 00:07:58 |
| Material Type: | Video |
| Clip Title: | "These Higher-Up Men Don't Understand The Common People" |
| Information: | For months, Northern Ireland had been making headlines across the world. A society divided by religion and politics now faced a general election. RTÉ Radio and Television had been covering the situation north of the border ever since the outbreak of unrest. This clip is taken from the television programme listed as 'Northern Ireland A Film Special'. The programme was presented by Kevin O'Kelly and produced by RTÉ News. O'Kelly looks at the issues in the lead up to an elections and speaks to residents of the Shankill and Falls Roads to gauge the mood across the religious and political divide. |
| Local Keywords: | Northern Ireland, Stormont, Election, 1969, Kevin O'Kelly, Alex Scott, Shankill Road |
| Coverage: | Ireland, Belfast |
| Genre: | News |
| Topic: | Wars and Conflict |
| Provider: | RTÉ |
| Contributor(s): | Kevin O'Kelly (Reporter) |
| Publisher: | RTÉ |
| First Broadcast Channel: | RTÉ |
| Production Year: | 1969 |
| Country of Production: | Ireland |
| Original Identifier: | P167/00069 |
| IPR Restrictions: | Rights Reserved - Free Access |
| Rights, Terms and Conditions: | Copyright RTÉ. This material may not be replicated in any form or manner without the prior express permission of RTÉ. Any form of reproduction in print, television, video, multimedia, web site or other electronic media or any form of dissemination for commercial or non-commercial use must be licensed by the RTÉ Archives. If you wish to licence video or audio clips, still images or text, or would like further guidance please contact us. RTÉ Archives are committed to respecting the copyright of others and have attempted to source and credit the copyright owners of all material used here. RTÉ would like to hear from any copyright owners who are not properly identified here so that the necessary corrections can be made. If you feel your copyright has not been respected please contact us. |
| Item Type: | part/extract |
| Colour: | Black and White |
| Sound: | Mono |
| Aspect Ratio: | 4:3 |
| Language: | English (eng) |
