Saoradh Holds “Unfinished Revolution” Parade To Mark Easter Rising Anniversary

Talking of commemorating the Easter Rising of 1916, the Irish revolutionary party, Saoradh, also staged its own demonstration in Belfast yesterday. It was surprisingly well-attended, given that it was passing through the traditional electoral heartland of Sinn Féin, the dominant republican movement in the country. Looking at some of the online social media photographs and videos I was surprised to see a couple of well-known “Troubles’ journalists” from the United Kingdom observing the event. That aside, I am somewhat lukewarm to say the least about paramilitary displays, generally judging them to be fairly antiquated and culturally inappropriate, and more often than not in this post-conflict (or possibly, ante-conflict) period, quite counterproductive. In my own judgement, the propaganda war won’t be won on the streets. But then again, Saoradh had more than the British Occupation in its sights by marching through West Belfast.

Below is a compilation of clips from Saturday’s parade, via Twitter and the journalists @ConnlaYoung and @ConallKearney. I have also added some related tweets from the reporter @Jake_Hanrahan.