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My
partner and I recently traveled to the Odyssey Centre
in Belfast to watch a newly released film. It was
our first time traveling across to the venue, getting
a 'black hack' down the Falls Road and a private taxi
across to its doors. This recent venue holds Warner
Village amongst other entertainments while others
are still in the process of development. It also hosts
a variety of restaurants, not your usual sit in cafe
as in the Kennedy Centre picture house in Andersonstown
but Spanish, Italian, Chinese cuisine and American
diners amongst others to tempt your taste buds. Although
only about 5pm, many of these restaurants were quite
full with families and groups of school friends, and
with meals around a tenner a touch there was still
a steady flow of punters.
The
centre itself was well furnished with the latest technology
and designs all geared towards family entertainment,
a testament one may say of the peace process. After
the film myself and my partner went outside for a
walk along the waterfront where we noticed immediately
the cleanness and lack of graffiti as council workers
busied themselves picking up the smallest of litter.
As we walked past the mounted water sprinklers and
watched the dazzling of lights reflect off the water
along the water front, we looked also at the lines
of luxurious apartments and offices that graced it
with many others in construction. It was a far cry
from even ten years ago and although not many persons
from working class estates could afford such apartments
or offices at least their kids can find the benefit
of such recent venues as the Odyssey - or can they?
As
we took a taxi across to a friend's house in South
Belfast I started to wonder as to how many families
from local working class areas could attend such a
venue with regularity. For two adults and two children
to watch a film, grab a hotdog, a drink and maybe
some popcorn it would cost, in the Odyssey, around
fifty pounds, almost a weeks shopping budget in some
homes - this not including transport or sitting in
for a meal. Such venues of entertainment were once
out of reach to many working class children, in part
for political reasons. Now ironically with the peace
process such venues are still out of reach to many
working class children for now increasingly economic
reasons as we see still the poverty gap ever widening.
Although such venues are welcomed we will still see
mainly those families and communities that bore the
brunt of the troubles finding it increasingly difficult
to appreciate such alternative family entertainments
as such are becoming already increasingly financially
out of reach for many.
After
a quick visit to our friends house we decided to dander
through our city that recently did not make the 'A'
list for the potential of being the City of Culture.
Coming down past the infamous Ulster Hall we saw two
young men wrapped in a sleeping blanket with a similar
situation across the road. We stopped to briefly chat
to them and to find out if they had found hostel shelter
to stay in for the night. I found from the brief discussion
a story of broken homes and abuse while others had
more overt psychological problems. These young men
in their early twenties knew neither peace or found
a process that gave even a glimmer of hope.
As
we then cut down by Brunswick street several other
persons were lying outside the Holiday Inn again wrapped
in blankets with a bowl and a sign of 'homeless please
help' - a woman lay on the ground with her arms embraced
in sleep to a partner. Coming then into Castle Street
we looked up at our right and another young man was
begging outside Primark and as we got into our taxi
two men lay asleep urine soaked on a cardboard box
while a woman drank from a cider bottle.
As
I watched and read the fanfare of the possibility
of becoming the City of Culture from nationalists
politicians and press, from unionist politicians and
press I believe such calls to be but a matter of hope
rather than realism. As we then traveled up the Falls
I saw some aspects of material change in the community
in which I was raised. Where once stood the St Augustine's
Youth Club were I went as a child now stood an unemployment
centre. Just past that my old primary school St Finians
where I attended until the early eighties stands now
an education centre, and such material change was
reflected in small ways all the way up the road. Yet
to me it seems many important issues are given but
a gloss where priorities are not based on need but
directed towards ever increasingly cross party economic
consensus which can cope with political differences
as opposed to the once mainly political and economic
discrimination with virtually no consensus - isn't
it interesting though that the aspects of consensus
now found is still leaving many of the same peoples
behind?
To
those who may be surprised that Belfast did not go
forward for the City of Culture, walk through our
city - see the ever increasing numbers of homeless
laying on our streets with their faces getting younger
and their numbers more numerous. Go through our working
class estates and on 'both sides' you will find in
many cases unity in poverty and social deprivation.
Check out the statistics for the growing number of
our youth taking their lives. The tourist guides of
our city may show our new wonderful sites but I believe
we have more important sights that need to be urgently
addressed - that of those who eke out an existence
on our city streets or those increasing numbers of
children and families that live in poverty. A new
tourist venue or new exhibition would mean little
to them but the mindset of our process I increasingly
find as one that seeks prosperity and provides development
for sections and areas of our society while crumbs
are waved to deprived communities and the vulnerable
to be fought over - only the most in need or desperate
need apply for their share.
As
we got out of our taxi and entered our estate we walked
down the alley, in which essential street lights remain
still broken, and squeezed past the burnt out car
that has lain their for several days. Again I wondered
how long it would take 'a call out' if one of those
dazzling lights along the water front was broken (so
spoiling appearance) or indeed could we see a burnt
out car lying for several days outside such apartments?
I think not. And despite community activists in working
class estates working tirelessly for the communities,
many persons in such estates are part of the 'other
two sides' within this process. That is - the lifestyles
of social and economic inclusion as opposed to the
life of persons, families and communities and their
continual exclusion.
Whether
one argues that this is not deliberate or that the
peace process is not perfect it has to be said that
there is a mindset amongst many within this process
that such issues are of rhetorical priority only.
Are those increasing numbers of youth that lie on
our streets worth less that bailing out a private
company? Are those increasing numbers of children
and families falling into poverty worth less than
looking for tax breaks for the rich? Is is right that
on the one hand to continually finance venues to service
those who can afford them while on the other hand
continually closing local community, youth and educational
centres in the most deprived areas for those that
need them?
Our
politicians spend much time and finance traveling
and looking continually for inward investment - they
seek also new and prosperous developments as is witnessed
along the water front. All this may be welcomed but
I wonder if maybe they could also spend more time
and finance on our citizens who have benefited not
from this process - could they seek new and affordable
developments in areas of need, could they provide
more affordable housing and facilities instead of
closing down centres and cutting funding? While they
marvel and speak out at the new skylight buildings
that are springing up in sections of our society let
them speak out and address the continual closing of
vital services in working class areas.
The
process as many have stated is not perfect. The political
mindset of the governance of our society was for a
long time dictated through a political and religious
basis of bias with economic and social reprecussions.
Despite the political change the continued economic
status quo has meant little change for many of the
most vulnerable. The divide between Catholic and Protestant
is often referred to as the 'two sides' yet this process
has increasingly highlighted 'the other two sides'
that of the 'haves' and 'have nots'. Is it not time
that real and important issues that affect many of
our society's somewhat 'forgotten' and vulnerable
peoples are given the same attention as that of others?
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