Bloody Sunday Trauma, Pain and Politics

by Hayes, Patrick; Campbell, Jim

• ISBN13: 9780745318547
• ISBN10: 0745318541
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-07-20
• Publisher: Pluto Press

Summary

Of all the grave crises in Northern Ireland's history, the events of Bloody Sunday are perhaps the most notorious. The subject of an independent inquiry that is the longest and most expensive the British government has ever undertaken, this yet to be resolved issue continues to be one of the most significant events in the recent history of the Troubles. This book tackles the subject from a new angle that covers both the political and psychological aspects of what happened. Based on extensive interviews with families whose relatives were killed by British soldiers, it is a record of the trauma that they have suffered. Setting Bloody Sunday in social, political and historical contexts, the authors examine the events of the day itself, the aftermath, and the relationship between post-traumatic stress disorder, grief, mourning and storytelling. They conclude with accounts about state and community responses to the trauma, and the impact and implications of the Saville Inquiry, which has allowed family members to express publicly their stories about the events of Bloody Sunday.

Author Biography

Patrick Hayes is a clinical social worker and has worked for 20 years in private practice as a psychotherapist. Much of his work involves the treatment of trauma related disorders.

Jim Campbell is a senior lecturer at the School of Social Work, Queens University Belfast where he teaches and publishes in the area of mental health social work and the impact of the troubles on service delivery.

Table of Contents

List of Figures and Tables	ix
Acknowledgements	xiii
Introduction	1	(155)
1 Bloody Sunday in context	9	(16)
The origins of the conflict	9	(3)
Northern Ireland: a contested state	12	(1)
Civil rights, increasing violence and internment	13	(3)
Events leading to Bloody Sunday	16	(3)
Bloody Sunday: the aftermath	19	(3)
Northern Ireland post-Belfast Agreement	22	(2)
Summary	24	(1)
2 Perspectives on state violence	25	(13)
Defining state violence	25	(5)
State violence in Northern Ireland, 1921-98	30	(5)
Reforming the state and the resolution of conflict: Northern Ireland post-Belfast Agreement	35	(2)
Summary	37	(1)
3 Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, grief, mourning and healing	38	(20)
The history of the concept of PTSD	38	(4)
Biological perspectives and PTSD	42	(1)
Type 1 and Type 2 traumas	42	(2)
PTSD and the Troubles in Northern Ireland	44	(3)
Grief, mourning and trauma	47	(1)
Grief and mourning	48	(1)
Children and grief	49	(1)
Children and trauma	49	(1)
Grief and trauma	50	(1)
Long-term consequences of trauma	51	(2)
Helping people with PTSD	53	(2)
Storytelling and trauma resolution	55	(1)
Summary	56	(2)
4 The study methodology	58	(12)
Rationale for the qualitative approach	58	(1)
The study instruments	59	(3)
The field process	62	(1)
The study sample	63	(1)
Data analysis: quantitative data	64	(2)
Data analysis: qualitative data	66	(1)
Study limitations	67	(2)
Summary	69	(1)
5 Bloody Sunday, 30 January 1972	70	(24)
The beginning of the day	70	(4)
Outcry and denial	74	(1)
Hearing the news: 'He's dead'	75	(5)
Going across to Altnagelvin	80	(2)
Traumatic stress and Bloody Sunday	82	(4)
The funerals: 'Thirteen coffins...a side show'	86	(3)
Foreshortened life and survivor guilt	89	(2)
Working through trauma	91	(2)
Summary	93	(1)
6 The traumatic aftermath	94	(15)
Trauma, grief and loss	94	(5)
'We don't talk about it'	99	(1)
Anger: 'They were innocent...Have to get a fair hearing'	100	(2)
The Bloody Sunday Justice Campaign: 'I thought I could do something'	102	(1)
Anti-violence and apoliticism: protecting the next generation	103	(5)
Summary	108	(1)
7 State and community responses to trauma	109	(20)
The early period of the Troubles	110	(1)
Direct rule and integrated service	111	(2)
The ceasefires and after	113	(4)
Dealing with the trauma of the past	117	(1)
Helping the Bloody Sunday families	118	(2)
State services	120	(5)
Non-governmental agencies	125	(3)
Summary	128	(1)
8 Bloody Sunday 30 years later	129	(15)
Experiencing the peace in Northern Ireland	129	(1)
Derry, August 2001	130	(3)
Grieving the lost relative	133	(2)
Living with the inquiry	135	(5)
The media and Derry response to the inquiry	140	(3)
Summary	143	(1)
9 The quest for justice and resolution of trauma? The Saville Inquiry	144	(12)
The Inquiry structure and process	147	(1)
Legal procedures	148	(1)
The magnitude and cost of the Inquiry	149	(1)
Strengths and weaknesses of the Inquiry	150	(2)
Will the Inquiry establish the truth and heal the wounds?	152	(2)
Summary	154	(2)
10 Witnessing Saville	156	(18)
Testimony: giving and getting support	156	(2)
Experiencing the Inquiry day by day	158	(1)
Hearing about the last moments of the dead	159	(1)
Questions answered	160	(2)
'Taking time out'	162	(1)
Repudiating Widgery	163	(1)
Fairness of the process: hopes and fears	164	(1)
Witness badgering	165	(2)
Apportioning the blame	167	(4)
'It's worth it'	171	(1)
Summary	172	(2)
11 Conclusion	174	(9)
Issues of methodology	174	(1)
Complex trauma: implications for resolution	175	(1)
Fear and a disempowered generation	176	(1)
The human experience of trauma: loss	177	(1)
A normal funeral	178	(1)
Justice, violence and politics	178	(1)
30 years after Bloody Sunday	179	(4)
Bibliography	183	(12)
Index	195