February 2, 2002 marked the centenary of John Steinbeck's birth. Jim Dwyer writes about the great American writer's Irish Roots. ℘℘℘ All the great novels and stories of John Steinbeck slice into the American experience, clear to the bone. They are set in California, or along Route 66, where the Joads trekked across the Southwest from the Dust Bowls. And Steinbeck himself, born … [Read more...] about The Voice of the Dispossessed
Derry
Martin McGuinness: The Man, The Myth, The Minister
The evolution of Martin McGuinness – from high school dropout and IRA man to political leader seeking an end to violence and, finally, his emergence as Northern Ireland's Minister for Education. If it's fair to judge the effectiveness of a politician by the depth of his opponents' dislike for him, then the Sinn Féin MP and Assemblyman for Mid-Ulster, Martin McGuinness, … [Read more...] about Martin McGuinness: The Man, The Myth, The Minister
For the Defense
If political power can be judged by how an individual influences society and changes its laws, then there's an arguable case for British defense lawyer Michael Mansfield being one of the most powerful figures on the British stage today. The list of trials and inquiries in which he has played a major role reads like a legal history of the last 20 years, including … [Read more...] about For the Defense
Apprentice Boys to March
As we go to press, nationalists in South Belfast are planning to stage a protest in response to the Parades Commission's decision to grant a loyalist organization permission to march through a Catholic neighborhood. However, the commission also ruled that the band accompanying the marchers should remain silent as it marched through the area. The decision came as a surprise … [Read more...] about Apprentice Boys to March
Return to Derry
I had almost a worm's-eye view of Bloody Sunday. I was working as a junior TV journalist covering a protest march through Derry on January 30, 1972, and like every other observer I was dumbfounded when the British Parachute Regiment opened fire on the protestors. I had just maneuvered my way over a low barricade of rubble when the shots rang out, and I flung myself on the … [Read more...] about Return to Derry