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THE IRISH JOURNALIST


Newsletter of the National Union of Journalists in Ireland Spring 2019


We gather in grief. We gather in anger. Grief at the loss of a woman of passionate commitment, of integrity, imagination and generosity. Anger at the murder of an innocent worker killed because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time: collateral damage in a senseless act of politically motivated violence. We also gather in hope. Lyra McKee refused to accept that change is impossible. She knew well what it was like to struggle against great odds, but she never lost hope. She belonged to a new generation and sought to achieve change with love in her heart and without an ounce of hatred. Lyra marched to the sound of a different drum. To you who took her life; to those who supplied the gun; to those who exploited the alienation of young men living without the sense


of purpose which propelled Lyra McKee I can only say: There is nothing ‘new’ in what you have to offer.


Lyra represented the future. Lay down your guns and look for a new path


away from senseless violence. The voices of workers, of victims, of long-


suffering communities deserve to be treated with respect. Too many workers have had to wear the unrequested crown of martyrdom. Workers like the former secretary of NUJ


Belfast branch, Martin O’Hagan, so long a feature of the May Day rally in Belfast. Our message is clear. The violence must cease. No more martyrs. No more victims.


— Séamus Dooley, Irish Secretary, May Day Rally, Belfast


INSIDE: NUJ stands with Lyra: pages 2-4; May Day in Belfast and Derry: pages 6-7; Living history: pages 10-11


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