‘Migration story, of loss, hope & success’

As part of Good Relations Week 2024, the Inter Ethnic Foum held a ‘Migration story, of loss, hope & success’ for members of Bann Maine West Cluster .
The keynote speaker Yuliia Zhylinska bravely shared the story of her journey here to Northern Ireland as part of the ‘Homes for Ukraine’ scheme 2.5 years ago with her 2 children whilst her husband remained behind to join the Ukrainian Army to defend their homeland.
We were also treated to traditional Ukrainian dishes of Buckwheat meat , cabbage rolls and honey cake.
Thanks to Joanne Brown Kerr for the invitation and Triangle Housing for funding this event.

Mid Ulster District Council Good Relations Week Celebration

Mid Ulster District Council is shining a spotlight on the transformative power of working together to address challenges such as sectarianism, racism, inequality, health and well-being, poverty and education.

Please join us for a spot of breakfast, engaging speakers and musical performances to celebrate some of the Good Relations work that has taken place this year.

Tea, coffee & breakfast from 09:30 and event start 10:00.

Connection: An evening of Story, Poetry and Song in Cookstown Library

Join us for a cross-border collaboration of songwriters, poets and storytellers from the Burnavon Writers’ Group based in Cookstown and the Monaghan Poets and Songwriters Group from Monaghan. These two collectives are coming together to entertain the public with their original stories, poems and songs, performed in celebration of the theme of ‘Connection’ as part of our events for Good Relations Week 2024.

This event is free and open to everyone. So come along, relax, listen and enjoy. Refreshments will be provided. Booking advisable by contacting Cookstown Library on 02886763702 or by email at CookstownLibrary@librariesni.org.uk

From Reporting the Troubles to the Troubles in Classrooms

Deric Henderson and Ivan Little are very experienced journalists who reported on the Northern Ireland conflict for most of its duration. Subsequently, their two highly acclaimed compilations of reporting from the time have made an important contribution to public understanding of the period from the insider perspective of those who recorded those turbulent and horrific years.

In more recent times, journalism has been openly critical of the role of schools, and history teachers, in failing to adequately provide young people with a grounded understanding of the nature of the conflict and its continuing impact on Ireland in the present.

This online session brings together the journalists, Deric Henderson, Brian Rowan and Freya McClements, of the Irish Times, history teachers and interested others, first to listen to Deric and Brian’s experiences of reporting the Troubles, then to consider the validity of criticisms of current history teaching practice and discuss the contribution that the journalistic legacy might make to enhancing the teaching of the Troubles in classrooms.

Galbally Runners’ One Mile Road Relay Race

In celebration of Good Relations Week 2024 and its theme of ‘OpportUNITY,’ Galbally Runners in partnership with Choice Housing Ireland is excited to bring back the One Mile Road Relay Race. This inclusive event, which winds through the heart of Dungannon, offers a unique opportunity for participants from all sections of the community to come together and engage in friendly competition. By encouraging teamwork and community spirit, the relay race embodies the week’s focus on unity and positive community relations.

Inspiring Women through the Art of Photography & Storytelling Exhibition in Cookstown

Over a period of 14 weeks, a group of 8 women from Cookstown of all ages and from various diverse backgrounds, came together to learn photography. The project was about much more than merely taking photographs, it involved empowerment, sharing experiences, storytelling, building confidence, writing
journals and learning through art. Connections were made and friendships were formed.

This was an individual project as well as a group project.

On Wednesday 2oth September 2023 (6-9pm) the book will be exhibited and launched in the Hub, Cookstown.

The event will be compered by Tim McGarry.

Bad Bridget at Ulster American Folk Park

The Bad Bridget exhibition at Ulster American Folk Park (on display until April 2024) tells the stories of the thousands of women who left Ireland for North America between 1838 and 1918. Many of whom found themselves facing troubles and struggling to survive.

Through a sensory experience of the lives of these women, visitors are taken on a journey beginning with their lives in Ireland, their experiences of life alone at sea to seeking jobs once they landed in America; as well as the real life experiences of living in poverty within the tenement housing of the period.

Bad Bridget is a continuing collaboration between  the museum, Queen’s University Belfast and  Ulster University and is based on significant research carried out by Dr Elaine Farrell and Dr Leanne McCormick.

Shared? On Tour 2023

Belfast based theatre company Partisan Productions, in partnership with Clanmil Housing has developed a forum theatre show called Shared? Based on the success of last years show it is now on tour!

Shared? follows a colourful cast of characters living in and near a shared housing development where a rumour has been circulating and the local Neighbourhood App has taken a definite turn for the odd. Partisan invite audiences to ‘meet these neighbours, from different countries, classes and cultures as their worlds begin to combine and collide’.

TogetHERness – reflections from Iceland

This event will be a hybrid event held in the offices of NIRWN Cookstown and online for rural women to come together to hear from the Director and Project Co-ordinator of NIRWN about their recent study visit to Iceland, through the support of the Social Change Initiative.

The staff will share the learning from this visit on the topic of gender equality, relating to all aspects of women’s lives in Iceland and will engage in a Q and A with participants.

This event is also an opportunity to explore issues relevant to rural women’s lives in Northern Ireland, particularly around gender equality as well as women, peace and security and will help shape and inform future NIRWN work in this field.