One example of discrimination was gerrymandering. In this process, unionists rigged the votes so that areas with a Catholic majority still elected a majority of unionist councillors to local government. The most blatant example of that was in Derry/ Londonderry. Unionists in gerrymandered councils controlled the allocation of houses and jobs.
LSource 2 Many of you employ Catholics but I have not one about the house. In Northern Ireland the Catholic population is increasing. 97% of Catholics in Ireland are disloyal and disruptive. If we allow Catholics to work on our farms we are traitors to Ulster. (Basil Brooke, future Prime Minister of Northern Ireland, speaking in 1933)
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In Derry/Londonderry, unionists divided up the city in such a way that the minority unionist population was able to get a majority of unionist councillors elected to control the city council. You can examine the map and the figures here to show how the unionists controlled the local council.
1. In Source 1, use the figures to show how Unionists controlled the local council in Derry/Londonderry.
2. In Source 2, what was the attitude of Basil Brooke to Catholics?
3. What does he mean when he says ‘If we allow Catholics to work on our farms we are traitors to Ulster’?
4. What are the conclusions to be drawn from the information in Source 3?
5. What do Sources 1 to 3 tell you about discrimination in Northern Ireland?
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LSource 3 Protestant and Catholic Employment in Belfast Engineering Firms, 1982
