1968 CIVIL RIGHTS MARCH ORGANISER TELLS WHY HE MIGHT HAVE CALLED IT OFF
Fifty years on, Londonderry reflects on the legacy of 1968 civil rights protest
ONE of the key organisers of the civil rights march in Londonderry half a century ago said he would never have gone ahead with it if he had known it would spark a conflict that would lead to the deaths and injuries of thousands of people.
Eamon Melaugh (81) will mark the 50th anniversary of the civil rights march in Derry tomorrow with a walk of atonement for all the lives lost in the Troubles.
October 5, 1968 is often recognised as the day the Troubles began after people taking part in a march organised by the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association came under attack from police using batons and water cannons.
The march organisers remain adamant the protest was not party political but was for better housing, jobs and votes for everyone.
Mr Melaugh told the Belfast Telegraph that he will walk the same route from Duke Street to the Diamond for thousands killed and injured during the Troubles.
He said: “I will walk the original route on October 5 but I will not take part in the march which has been organised by others on Saturday.
“It will be a solo effort in atonement for all of those who were murdered and seriously injured.
“I never intended nor envisioned that 40,000 people would suffer life changing injuries and over 3,500 people would be left dead — I never contemplated that.
“If I had, I wouldn’t have gone ahead with it but I have had to live with the consequences of what I was partially responsible for.
“This walk on Friday to the Diamond will be an act of atonement by me for all the people who lost their lives.
“Sympathy and compassion should not know any boundaries or frontiers, it certainly doesn’t with me.
“A lot of people have come to me and offered to walk with me but I said no.”
Among other events taking place in Derry is an exhibition featuring a special collection of artefacts highlighting some of the most significant events of the civil rights era. It will open tomorrow at the Nerve Visual Gallery in Ebrington.
The Speeches, Strikes and Struggles: Curating Conflict exhibition is led by the Tower Museum, and offers the chance for the public to view rarely before seen collections highlighting key moments of the Troubles dating from 1968 to the present day.
This project combines resources from three major collections held in the museum archives from Bridget Bond, Gerry Lynch and the newly acquired Peter Moloney collection.
Mr Moloney’s collection consists of 50,000 items charting the identity and culture of Northern Ireland during the Troubles.
“Some of my collection may upset people but we can’t rewrite history,” he said.
“My only wish is that people see it and learn from it.”
Sinn Fein has organised a march on Saturday which will follow the original route from Duke Street in the Waterside, across the Craigavon Bridge to the Diamond.