NI Young Life and Times Survey - 2017: Community Relations Comments

Year: 2018
Module: Community Relations
Variable: COMMENTS

Below are the responses to the open-ended question:
'Is there anything else you would like to say about community relations in Northern Ireland?'
Note: Responses were only edited for grammatical reasons, if necessary. Square brackets indicate where editing occurred.

A new Ireland would offer a home to all and be a country of equals

Although I attended a mainly protestant school, my best friend is catholic but we do not let this have an input on our friendship.

although over the past 30 years tensions have decreased there is still multiple cases of sectarian and racial discrimination each year. regardless of this, relations are mostly positive

An effort could be made to make people of all religions welcome in my community, for example by maybe having more sports that aren't just associated with one side of the community or having more celebrations that both sides can celebrate together rather than just having saint Patricks Day and the 12th separately. I feel protestants in particular could make a much better effort.

As a catholic living in a protestant area I am well accustomed to cross-community relations. However some of my friends from more catholic communities I find to be living in their own isolated bubble of reality.

As I go to a catholic school, Protestants are talked about very badly and although I still witness this outside of school, it’s not as bad

As long as groups of close minded people exist in each community, there will only be a certain amount of progress

As the area I live in is mostly mixed (around 60/40 Protestant) it means very little to most people in the area. However the small subsections of areas who use flags or painted curbs to intimate local people is simply unacceptable. There is a very clear and obvious difference between celebrating one’s culture and using it to perpetrate fear.

Backwards compared to other countries

Based on my parents’ experiences, relations have improved a lot however there is room for lots more

Because our parents were brought up during the troubles, some raise their children (our generation) to have hate towards Protestants or Catholics. Parents that brought up this generation teaching us to not care whether someone is Protestant or Catholic are smarter. Many in this generation don't care about it.

better with younger people.

Both Catholics and protestants are almost given a negative connotation when said to members of some community but in reality there are nice Catholics and nice protestants but similarly not so nice Catholics and protestants. Being branded as one almost given off the bad side of each without even knowing the person.

Both protestant and catholic communities are as bad as each other. However protestant communities seem to be labelled as worse. Catholic communities also seem to be able to say anything bad about protestant communities however if protestant communities say anything bad about catholic communities it almost turns into world war 3

Brexit is causing relations between unionists and nationalists to decline

Brexit is ruining the country and dividing people

Certain areas in Northern Ireland are affected more than others

Certain communities in certain places are quite (and too) divided.

Children my age have been raised differently than I have, of course, but this means some people continue to be judgemental towards the opposite religion.

Coming from Ulidia Integrated College myself, it has enlightened my knowledge of other cultural beliefs.

Communication between community relations needs to improve and people need to break down the wall of prejudice between communities and talk to one another without race, religion, politics etc. interfering with the progress of community relations.

COMMUNITY RELATIONS CANNOT DEVELOP UNTIL POWER SHARING IS RE-ESTABLISHED IN N.I. GOVERNMENT.

Community relations have definitely gotten better overall and young people are very tolerant of diverse backgrounds yet due to old prejudices sticking around due to influences of the older generation relations cannot improve much more.

Community relations I feel are definitely improving. However, with Brexit coming into play, I believe that some problems may occur as a result of this. Regardless of Brexit and what happens, I believe that everyone regardless of age, race, gender, social class and religion should stand by each other and support one another.

Community relations in NI are bias towards Catholics, in media, in representation and in education. As someone who was brought up in a unionist household, I feel I have been discriminated by members of the other community.

Community relations in Northern Ireland aren't good at all. I go to an integrated school, however I still see discrimination form main white male protestants. People are quick to say that times have changed since they were kids, but as a 16 year old I don't believe they have, there may not be guns as widely available and what not but discrimination is still as strong as ever. I personally am not Catholic nor am I Protestant as I do not identify as a Christian and I believe if you are going to […]

Community relations will more than likely remain the same for a long time as there are people in this society that have been indoctrinated by friends and family from a young age to believe certain stereotypes about certain groups of people meaning changing their beliefs will be extremely hard and would require lots of time and money. The only way to change these community relations long term would be to abolish organisations such as the orange order who discriminate against certain groups of people (for example singing songs about killing Catholics in catholic areas)

Community relations will never improve unless the past is dealt with correctly. Politicians need to step up and help people to move on from the 'green' and 'orange' and the past.

Community relationships in Northern Ireland are damaged due to our government not going to work, everything is at a standstill and things are becoming hostile.

Concerns regarding Brexit, impacting economy, jobs and peace.

Could be a lot of work put into the way be try to help build relations between mixed religions.

Could be improved on

Depending on areas within Northern Ireland at times relations aren't good. Everyone is brought up a certain way and that won't change as both Catholics and Protestants will also favour their own side.

Depending on where you live in NI or the background of family can also contribute to the relations in this country.

Depends on different areas you live in.

Don’t know

Due to the events of the troubles I feel there will always be bad relations between protestants and Catholics

Elected representatives should hang their heads in shame for their promoting some self-steered opinions.

Even though community relations in Northern Ireland are better than what they were 40/50 years ago, it is still abysmal and should be a lot more accepting and open to all religions, ethnicities and sexual orientation. I definitely can’t see myself living in Northern Ireland when I’m older.

even though the prejudice between catholic and protestant communities aren’t as bad as what they used to be (the troubles), there is still a tension where people aren’t able to let go of the past due to the things they've seen, been through (Bloody Sunday) and how they have been treated and been prejudice against.

Get Stormont up and running politicians are worse than kids, useless bunch of idiots

Government don’t help the relations.

Having gone to an integrated secondary school, I believe integrated education is one of the easiest ways in improving community relations in Northern Ireland. Schools should not be segregated as this only fuels the problems and hatred in NI!

Hopefully in the future everyone with different religions and ethnic groups would treat the same and equal.

I again feel that perceived hate on the other side is taught by the previous generation to their kids. As time goes on I feel this would wear off. In cities and town especially LD/D and Belfast tensions could be at their worse due to conflict always being there. In a rural setting everyone is much more spaced out so I feel people meet those of different backgrounds much more frequently.

I am very oblivious to the goings on of communities, so I have little more to offer on the subject -

I believe Brexit had overall put more strain on community relations in Northern Ireland

I believe in ethnic diversity, although in the Protestant Community (in which I was raised) I think it is disgusting that 12 July is used to celebrate the defeat and killing of catholic people and that it is still allowed to continue to this day.

I believe moderates from both sides of the community get along well, it’s just more extremists don't get along.

I believe religion shouldn’t be considered in any decision

I believe some people now a days have been brought up by their families of friends to believe that they are Protestant or Catholic and you should stay away from the opposite side, this has usually been done through stories of the past or separated schools e.g. catholic or majority of protestants

I believe that community relations or better than they were in the past but there is still a way to go before they are at ideal standards for most people at least that I know.

I believe that generally there are good community relations in Northern Ireland, however strong prejudices still exist amongst a good proportion of the population. Whilst many older people do their best to achieve peace and put the past difficulties behind them, the majority of young people maintain sectarian values from past generations by promoting, in many instances, ideals that they themselves don’t truly believe in. However mob mentality means that large groups of young people, with no tangible connection to people with genuine sectarian beliefs can rekindle long extinguished conflicts with other religious communities in Northern Ireland. In short, sectarianism isn’t going away in the youth of this country.

I believe that more programmes need to be put in place in local communities that will appeal to all young people, in order to build rapports with each other we need to be able to go to schemes that aren’t run specifically by one denomination i.e. cross community centres for young people.

I believe that politicians and people who are older make problems between communities which never existed.

I believe that since the good Friday agreement things have gotten better but it could be largely undone depending on what happens with the border after Brexit. I think that if there was a hard border it could greatly spark tensions between Catholic and Protestant communities

I believe that the younger generation with little help from their elders have become far more tolerant and accepting of one another.

I believe that with Brexit, community relations will see an increase in hostility. Different views on the subject will cause tensions that I think should be avoided through having a second referendum. I also would like to say that I believe the ore diverse the community, the better the inhabitants will be at accepting one another. I think it is ridiculous that some areas around Belfast are so discriminatory or disrespect to other communities.

I can say this with hope and prosperity, that the relations between nationalists and unionists will continue to improve over the years to come.

I don’t fully understand them

I don’t like how important religion is in school

I don’t mind doing cross community activities but I think it’s stupid to do them just for the sake of doing them. I also feel that because of historic inequalities between protestants and Catholics, people are trying to make it more fair but in doing so have begun to push it the other way so that now in many things it is easier to get a job as a catholic. E.g. Department of Agriculture moving to Ballyhally.

I don’t mind what people are, but that does not mean that they will not mind what I am.

I don’t think it will ever eradicate from Northern Ireland.

I don't have an opinion on people from different religions or ethnic backgrounds, they are still people

I don't think people accept you can be neither Protestant or Catholic. I think people should stop putting people into a stereotype due to their school, where they live etc…

I fear that relationships between different religions will never change in Northern Ireland

I feel a sense of belonging in my own community and it made me very happy when many of the neighbours got together for a barbeque and spent some time together. The backgrounds of those attending was not at all important nor mentioned. In general, from what I observe on a day to day basis in Northern Ireland, everybody treats each other nicely and many communities have a pleasant feel to them.

I feel as if people are a lot less worried about working with people from a different religion because a religion should not entirely define a person and as young people grow up, they will be mixing with people from many different religions

I feel as if there is a lot of racism against minority groups (Chinese, Polish etc.) which is upsetting

I feel instead of asking questions about religion I should be asked questions about politics as from the two main religions these are two distinct groups; Protestant - unionists and loyalists. Catholic - nationalists and Republicans. I personally feel that people who are Unionists and Nationalists are happy to co-exist in this country together. On the other hand, Republicans and Loyalists are not. This is why I feel this country hasn't developed in this way for decades.

I feel like Brexit has started to stir up some conflict again regarding the hard border and the back stop, but I really hope that we can continue to progress and develop cross community relations.

I feel like especially in my area funding in cross community schemes have increased people’s awareness of the need for integration and have led to a more peaceful atmosphere.

I feel like people my age don't really care if you are Protestant or Catholic etc. as it doesn't really come up in conversation very much.

I feel like some people try to hide their religion or ethnic background to avoid conflict.

I feel like younger people are less prejudiced towards each other than they were in previous generations, which I feel is likely due to the gap between the troubles and now.

I feel protestant and Catholics are both mixing very well now and although I have friends from college from the minority ethnic groups I feel the majority of them keep to themselves and don’t mix well. E.g. if I go into one of their shops they stop talking and stare at me.

I feel that as a society we focus on mostly religious and ethnic community relations and while this is obviously important, we put so much pressure on these topics that we no longer consider Northern Irish society as its own community - I feel instead of focussing in on religious or ethnic relations, we sometimes need to look at our community as a whole.

I feel that generally my area is quite mixed, though certain parts of the town are still regarded as Protestant or Catholic.

I feel that in the last few years despite progress in the past, relations have deteriorated between Catholics and Protestants around my age, I have witnessed quite a lot of hard feeling coming from both groups

I feel that it is parent who influence their children on racist thoughts, but in time I think relationships will improve with young people of different backgrounds.

I feel that the troubles still influence the young people in our society even though we weren't alive during them. It is parents/grandparents who have lived through them that encourage the hatred towards the "other side” of young people of both protestant and Catholic backgrounds. Although this can only be said for a small minority of people. Coming from an all Catholic school in a Catholic based town I can say many young people there feel strongly against protestants because their family have […]

I feel that young people are easily influenced about how they view other religions. They have views about both sides of the community but they are unintentional and its due to the way we are brought up and what our family believe.

I feel that, relations between both communities has gotten better through integrated schools, youth clubs, schemes etc. there is still a long way to go in achieving full peace in NI and improving relations between adults and children from different communities.

I feel the relationship between protestants and Catholics are substantial at the moment, but fear when Brexit takes place it will become the same as it was 20-25 years ago.

I feel the sectarian views that people my age have is very much influenced by parents and parents should be targeted to prevent sectarianism.

I feel they will get worse is Brexit ends badly. I do feel huge progression has been made however as I get older I can see some people are fixed in their ways and this won’t change if both religions don’t try

I find that the community in which I live is welcoming towards my friends even though it is mostly protestant.

I get the impression that racial/prejudice/sectarian attacks are on the rise.

I grew up in a very loyalist family, and I also grew up attending school on a bus with Catholic children. I've had some bad experiences with Catholics, but I've also had the same bad experiences with Protestants. The most I can say on this matter is that neither me or my friends think what religion you are is a contributing factor towards whether we want to be your friends or not.

I hate the divide that all the flags cause. I feel very uncomfortable in areas covered with union jacks as it just encourages hostility. I want to live in a country where religion doesn't matter + I'm afraid that will never be NI

I have a strong feeling that religion will always play a part in the way people see each other in Northern Ireland. While these relations have significantly improved, there will, unfortunately, always be prejudice against others.

I have many friends from lots of different religions so I feel religion isn’t that big of a deal these days

I have never felt strongly about the problem between protestant and Catholics until recent years. I in no way have any negative views towards the protestant community but I do have something against how some of them act. Being called a 'fenian bastard' while walking to class should not happen and although I have never retaliated it still occurs 3 times a week I have to deal with it. I have to worry about where I walk in my uniform in case I walk into the wrong town, I also have a huge issue with flags I see Union Jacks flown everywhere but when I wear an Irish flag on St Patricks Day I was asked to remove it and I was not causing any trouble.

I hope in 5 years I am wrong and they do improve.

I hope in the future people in Northern Ireland will see the person rather than their religion.

I hope the politicians catch themselves on and start to do something to help communities. They should be back working I have no one to go to if I need to and they don’t do anything to help community relations.

I hope with the new generations emerging in Northern Ireland questions like these in this survey will not have to be ask, and we can rebuild a better, more diverse community without as much contention as witnessed in the past. "The salvation of man is through love and in love" - Viktor E. Frankl

I personally feel that some people hold on to the past and are intransigent but myself and many others feel that such things as religious, sexual, ethnic identity shouldn't cause our communities to be divided.

I personally feel that tribal politics in Northern Ireland prevents community relations from improving as much as they should

I play football and I would like to see better relations on and off the pitch, sometimes the parents are worse!

I really think the troubles has set Northern Ireland back several years in terms of inclusivity and acceptance. There’s still a lot pf parents raising their children either highly catholic or protestant which will continue to cause conflict for years to come. It’s the community/parents who maybe enforce their beliefs on their child, but also teaches them inclusivity that will help Northern Ireland to progress socially and there are a lot of people like that nowadays which is a good start.

I sometimes feel as though I have been restricted in forming relationships with other community due to the tensions in my community.

I think a lot of young people want relations to improve and don’t care whether someone is catholic or protestant.

I think a person’s religion should not define who they are. I think all religions should move on and come as one. Personally, it doesn’t matter to me if someone has a different religion. I would still be friends with that person.

I think attitudes in Northern Ireland involving the Irish language are disappointing. Yes, not everyone may want to speak or learn the language, but what about those who do? There should not be a political stigma attached to the Irish language it should be embraced and promoted peacefully.

I think Brexit could make community relations worse in Northern Ireland.

I think community relations are good, but the things people post on social media sometimes, or graffiti can be offensive and mean to people from different backgrounds. If its posted to target Catholics/ protestants in a negative light there’s no need for it.

I think integrated schools should be wider spread and given more funding.

I think it depends on the person and how open they are to the other religion. Some people from different religions mix well, whereas others don't.

I think it is really important for people to communicate and be friends with a very diverse range of people to grow awareness and appreciate everyone is important and have their own strengths!

I think it is vital that as a community we leave behind the attitude of only mixing with people with the same ethnic background or religion as you. We might stop segregating ourselves and do things to help one another

I think it really depends on how someone was raised as to how racist or secretariat they are. The generation of those who lived through the troubles can still be very secretariat at times so it has rubbed off onto our generations.

I think most communities get on well, its only ones that still live in the past, that cause the issues and hate

I think people need to disregard where people come from including their religious beliefs. Everyone is human and people should respect each other as equal for it.

I think relations between Catholics and Protestants will become worse in the future because of Brexit. A hard border in the middle of our country can only have a negative effect on our relationship.

I think that although there are different communities, some 100% Catholic, some 100% Protestant and some mixed, everyone as far as I have seen, is respectful. For example, the 5A bus passes through a Protestant estate and then a Catholic estate, however there is never any animosity. This shows it is possible for Protestants and Catholics to live harmoniously, and that they currently do.

I think that community relations in Northern Ireland have and will continue to improve because I think people are less prejudice

I think that despite all of the cross community events, people are still undoubtedly going to favour whichever way they were brought up in. This is especially true with people who had to live through the Troubles and had to experience this first hand. Also, so long as the main Unionist and Nationalist parties - DUP and Sinn Fein respectively - continue to squabble out and disrupt the entire country because of their beliefs, there is no way in the foreseeable future that the cross-community relations will heal completely.

I think that for a while, relations were notably better, however due to the political changes to do with topics such as Brexit, refugees, and the lack of government in Northern Ireland, relations seem to have deteriorated yet again.

I think that it's ridiculous how important religious background is to some people in this country. Of course, religious identity is important to many people, but I think it should be a personal thing and not something for people to be judged on.

I think that religion will always be an issue because of the past, I just hope history doesn’t repeat itself and Northern Ireland can move on and focus on more important issues.

I think that religious backgrounds shouldn’t be a big deal, as you should want to accept someone for who they are.

I think that the political parties have made the religious divide bigger and removing them would improve over generations. Also Brexit will also increase the divide, as some believe it is back door to a united Ireland and others desire being further removed from the Republic.

I think that until all schools are integrated, children in Northern Ireland will grow up believing that children who are from a different community to them are different and deserve less respect than others because it has been ingrained in them from a child.

I think that values influencing how people treat each other are strongly influenced by parents, who in my experience tend to be quite extreme and unwilling to accept differences. Therefore stopping their children being able to develop their own opinions. This affects Community relationships in NI as people my age (16-17) create lots of friction based on their peer’s religion

I think that, with the way Brexit is going, relationships in Ireland/N.Ireland are going to get worse. Especially with the possible implement of a hard boarder.

I think the effect of Brexit will have widespread negative impact on the community relationships between Catholics, protestants and minority groups, particularly for the citizens of Northern Ireland

I think the relations between communities are better now than they used to be and that has been helped by young people learning about other people’s differences and accepting people as they are, through school (learning for life and work) and other activities

I think there has been an increase in discrimination towards minority groups rather than between Catholicism and Protestantism.

I think there is room for improvement but there is still a long way to go

I think there needs to be less people being focused on others and should just focus on their own religion, not be rude to others that don’t share it

I think there will be a new 'troubles' in years to come as there is a big uproar and conflict between protestants and Catholics in regards to borders, the way the countries are divided and laws to do with the two countries.

I think they aren't too bad

I went to an Integrated Primary School and ALL schools should be like that.

I went to an Islamic studies lesson as I heard it was funded by the council, divisiveness was often taught there and I worry for Islamic/Christian relations in my lifetime.

I wish people didn’t value whether or not you are a protestant or catholic in this country so much

I wish this country could move forward and without fixation on religion.

I wish we could all live together in peace, without fear of attack or abuse things like flags, parades, murals should all be banned on both sides. We need to all put the past where it belongs, "in the past" we need a new start.

I would hope that they would improve

I would like to say that to build relations we need to open up a conversation not just locally but globally. Recently I along with some classmates took part in a Stranmillis talk called "Those were the days" held at the University. At that talk we heard from both communities and discussed the troubles from both sides and it was a very educational event. I believe that an emphasis needs to be put on educating the young as we are not only the future but we are the present. Northern Ireland is my h

I would like to see a time where it didn’t matter what religion you where

I would like to see more done in communities to bring people from all backgrounds closer together

I would like to think that community relations are improving. However, it will take time and forgiveness before this can happen, and the Stormont government is hurting this by their own inability to work together for a better Northern Ireland.

I would prefer religion not be something people have to consider

If a parent is prejudiced they will show their kids to be the same which will upset community relations.

If our current political stalemate continues, things may get worse

If our society was normal, shared education wouldn’t have to exist- that’s the goal. Let refugees in so that we can dilute our sectarian culture asap. I am so sick of having to pretend to be catholic in my school, just because I wanted a better education. I was also so sick of pretending to be protestant around my protestant friends in my protestant school. NI is a sovereign state full of bigots and I can’t wait to leave.

If the government goes back I would say to try and get all different religions and ethnic groups to work better together

Ignorance

I'm a teenager brought up as a Catholic in predominantly Protestant area, and I am Northern Irish, this is important to me. Both religions should recognise their real national identity instead of adopting from one side or the other.

In my opinion older generations are a main source for why there are still some barriers between communities.

In my opinion, I feel that bringing various communities together is definitely going to change people’s mind-set about other people's religion. It is also very important that kids start getting involved with other people from other backgrounds rather than just relate with people with same religion.

Inter-community relationships are growing strong amongst us young people, but I feel that our politicians need to do a better job and need to steer away from historical orange and green issues and help us strive for a prosperous future together.

It all depends on where you live in Northern Ireland, like different council areas do more community relations than others and some councils damage community relations.

It can depend on how strongly the people in communities feel about their religion, many people are very open to mixing between religions, others with stronger views can cause trouble

It is essential to move forward

It is fine

It is not as integrated as it should be, nor reflective of wider society. People don’t really seem to have a say.

It is probably as good as anywhere in the world. It's not perfect but it's fairly good.

It is very split. There is areas of my town that is known as a 'protestant' or 'catholic' estate.

It makes me very sad to see how divided the country is, young people today seem to be some of the only people willing to work together.

It needs to be fixed

It really depends on the people some have worse relations between communities, others have better relations.

It seems better now than it was

It shouldn’t matter but I know there is still people against mingling with each other.

It will be worse if there's a boarder

It will not get better unless our MLA's go back to work and stop acting like children. The more cross-community in our youth (prior to being prejudiced and brainwashed by religious/political agenda) The greater and more prosperous our relationships will be in the future as we learn the other community is actually not so different and actually are as nice.

It won’t improve unless we've a government!! And schools become mixed take down the peace walls atop keeping religions apart! Generations to come may never meet someone from another religion because of it.

It would be better if Catholics would stop murdering members of the security forces, and bombing towns.

It’s always one sided- never equal.

It's improving overall from my viewpoint, but the prejudice may never be gone for everyone.

It's mainly older people that still care about divisions; many young people don’t care or pay attention to past prejudices and those that do learn it from their parents and are yet to think for themselves.

It’s not as bad as the media or politicians make out

It’s not the best considering there are schools which are catholic and others which are protestant with very few integrated schools.

it’s not the young ones with the problems it the parents who drill biased information into their kids about how bad Catholics were during the troubles and vis versa

It's quite sound but would feel safer if there was less conflict and more support.

Its shit

I've never personally witnessed any conflict between any communities in my lifetime, so I believe it's ok.

Knuckle down on bonfires with flags from other side

less bombs

Many are vulgar, intolerant bigots

Mixing of religions in Northern Ireland isn’t as fluid as everyone seems to make it out to be. In my area there are both Catholic and Protestant high schools, despite saying they accept all religions the majority of the school will be the specific religion. Secondary schools aren’t as bad but primary schools will have 99% one religion. Also area are very segregated and you know what areas are regarded as catholic or protestant or nationalist etc. In areas/places I’ve seen only people in houses or private property have flags but when going through parts of towns there will be many unionist flags hung on lamp posts and at shops.

More integration needed- Schools have a big part to play. More opportunities needed to meet people from other religions/backgrounds- Flags are contentious

Most areas are too highly sectarian which is having a mass influence still on the young generation from their older generations. DUP and Sinn Fein are pointless and are just splitting people up. Should be much more integrated. Being prejudiced on names e.g. Kieral O'Neill

Most catholic and protestants communities get along, but there is always a few idiots from both sides who start trouble.

Most issues caused between communities come from local minorities (loyalist and Republican) and not from most people

Most of 'Northern Ireland' wants to have a United Ireland but people from Belfast and all the Unionist areas want to leave Europe which isn't fair on us having to live with that for the rest of our lives. And there's a lot more and I said some of it previously.

most of the people in my community have a lot of respect for each other as well as showing the same amount of respect to protestant people. Although this is mainly the case, I have witnessed in past some prejudiced and discriminative actions towards people of different religions and ethnicity groups.

Most people in my generation don’t care if you are protestant or catholic, however they may still feel strongly about their own, it doesn’t make them hate to the other religion, this ia as my generation didn’t experience "the troubles" and don’t care about them or religion.

Most people who consider themselves Catholic or Protestant are only doing so because it is the family that they were born into that has brought them to think and view things in the way they do, in my opinion I believe that children should be neutral to religion until they are old enough to decide what they believe.

Mostly positive but there’s always room for improvement

Movement away from strict religion seems to be improving community relations

My community which is strong nationalist feel that the need for any interaction from the unionist community is unneeded which is rather unfortunate and shows the divide that still exists between us.

My generation don’t mix with people in other religions very well

my parents were each brought up Protestant and Catholic and so I feel impartial in many of these issues. but I believe we should be integrated in schools etc. growing up.

My sister (older) went to an integrated secondary school and got bullied because of our religion. We were never told about racial abuse by our parents/ family. It was very upsetting seeing our sister treated and talked to like that. She had to move school because of it.

N/A [32]

Needs to be more education on different religions. More integration with Catholics and protestants

Neighbourhoods tend to exclude people from different countries- bullying, harassing people// children which were not born in the UK

Nil go leoir meas ag beariarai do na gaeilgeoir anseo. There is not enough respect for the Irish speakers from our community from the English speakers. For example; this document is not bi-lingual.

No because I don't know that much.

No comment.

No I do not judge via religion so.

No not really

No nothing else.

No thank you

No thanks

No, but I feel as though people here are too bitter and will never move on, there’s always going to be conflict in NI. Especially between the protestant and catholic.

No, everything has been covered in the previous questions

No, I honestly don’t mind and don’t judge on religion even though it affects community relations in the country.

No, they are changing bc people have a better understanding

No [135]

None [2]

Nope [7]

Nope. Although Brexit will ruin everything.

Northern Ireland is seemingly extremely 'racist' and 'sectarianism' is no stranger. However there are so many cross community projects that do not get enough attention in the media; i.e. musical societies where personal background is not even a thing that is remotely considered.

Northern Ireland will never change when it comes to religion which is sad everyone should just learn to live together there are more important things than religion live and let live

Northern Irish people are very kind, respectful, loving and social.

Not at this moment, no. Although the communities have been drifting apart.

Not much is gonna change without Government. What's the point of different political views without politics?

Not really

not really, there’s just no point in all the arguing, if someone feels they are British, Irish, whatever, they are because they say they are

Not very good, could be better

Nothing [7]

Nothing else to say.

Overall, I think everything is down to how Brexit plans out. I do think more events should be held in order to bring different ethnic groups together and closer as I think people decide on whether they like different ethnic groups by what and who they're influenced by

parents and grandparents already have their children 'brainwashed' into not liking the other religion specifically protestant and catholic at a very young age. schools need to teach about what actually happened in the troubles and not teach different aspects to different religious groups to make them feel as though they were in the right.

Parents need to do more to discourage prejudices in their children to improve community relations.

parents should stay out of it and allow children to mix with whoever they want to. Religion doesn't matter

Pathetic and childish. Religion, particularly in NI causes conflict constantly. NI does not seem to welcome minority groups either.

People are judged primarily by their religion, ethnic background or if they are protestant or catholic. We are all human and shouldn't be divided by having different beliefs or opinions

People are not really up for change in NI when it comes to hearing other people out from what I witness. People are scared of things they don't understand or can't relate to which includes people. The government collapse due to a fight between DUP and Sinn Fein I believe has decreased the chance in people from different communities to come together.

People are too ignorant to one another and profile one another based on their beliefs, clothes or names etc.

People claim Northern Ireland is incredibly diverse however it's always just straight, white, cisgender, Christians. Never any LGBT+ respect or representation nor ethic or religious. As a gay, pagan, transgender boy I don't feel safe in Northern Ireland. Everyone in the older generations is prejudice openly and they're driven my hate.

People focus on it too much just let people get on with it

People from different areas feel differently about the same subjects.

People just need to be informed of how actually similar Protestantism and Catholicism is because when we learnt about Catholicism in school, some were genuinely shocked about how similar they are. I think as the younger generation and my generation learns that, it’ll be easier to put aside differences because we haven’t lived through conflict like previous generations have. Hopefully community relations will get better but they only will if more focus is put on integrating and showing how si[…]

People look to the past too often never to the future.

People need to be more accepting of others as a whole regardless of religion

People need to have a better understanding of different groups in society, this can be helped by local MLA's. People need to be more tolerant and put the past in the past. Other minorities need to integrate.

People stand up for one another although Brexit is going to cause extreme issues with nationalist and unionists.

Personally, I don’t care what religion someone is, I think others might but I think what matters is if you treat people with kindness and respect.

Personally, I see no difference in people with different religious beliefs. However, conflict between those from different religions and ethnic backgrounds still prevails to this day. I hope that NI will evolve soon and sectarian views will be abolished in the not too distant future. Views surrounding gender and sexual orientation still cause conflict to this day on top of religious and ethnic views, so my only desire is that equality is soon reached in NI.

Political leaders are failing on the matter

Protestant and catholic communities sometimes make Christianity look bad because of their prejudice and hatred toward each other that isn’t based on religion but over a 400 year old or more land disagreement.

relations between teenagers of different communities are slowly improving but it’s the influence of parents/ older figures that cause divide

Relations can be dependent on upbringing so there will always be difference of opinion along with acceptance

Religious relations have improved significantly in the past 20 years. I now believe that race relations should now be improved, as NI has continued to grow its population of non-whites it is important that those from minority groups are made to feel welcome and are able to integrate easily making themselves feel like they are part of the community.

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Should come together more often

Slowly changing for the better but will take time

Sometimes you can feel the divide between protestant and catholic and sometimes you can't

Specific areas are bad in between is ok

Still living and basing opinions of the events in the past.

Still needs a lot of work battling prejudice and discrimination

still some problems

Still very segregated.

Stop making a difference, we see ourselves as who we are, not.

sub2pewdiepie

Tension had decreased for a short period of time however with Brexit both my friends and myself have felt an increase in tension especially between Catholics and protestants. This tension will only either worsen or get better depending on the Brexit outcome specifically the situation resolving the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland

That it is mainly the older generations that care about religion or race, the younger generation don't care because they can be talking over social media and not know anyone’s religious standpoint and still get along.

That too many people are stuck in the past and need to move forward with a positive outlook on cross community, as we need the next generation of children to grow up open-minded and a great sense of cross community.

The community arts funding is awful and there is not enough cross community work.

The community relations are good. But in certain circumstances it can improve more as some people feel like they are not included.

The community relations in Northern Ireland are very bad.

The majority of people have good cross-community relations and are neither prejudiced or discriminating it is only the minority who are, and are causing issues in Northern Ireland

The more politicians disagree and cast bias opinion the worse the situation gets.

The new generations have positively improved relations with shared community projects, however I believe that politicians set a negative example with the conflicts between them. I hope that as new generations enter politics there will be much more positive relations between community religions, respecting opinions of other religions and making decisions based on this.

The ongoing war between the Catholics and protestants seems very stupid to the rest of the world, but I can't help it, its ingrained into my beliefs. The way I few protestants is harmful, less superior, and more sensitive. I am all-inclusive when it comes to other religions and ethnic minorities, but for some reason, I can't change the way I think, although I try.

The only way for cross-community relations to develop in a better way is through integrated schools

The politics in NI is what is holding up better community relations

The relations between protestants and Catholics has gotten a lot better over the years, however in some places, like Londonderry it is still not great and both sides are very bitter

The relations in communities really all depends on familial backgrounds and where a young person grew up along with personal choices. The secondary factors (parents living place) cannot be ignored.

The relationship between people in certain areas is fine but there are people from different groups that wouldn’t walk through a street full of loyalist flags as I wouldn’t but it’s the same as loyalists not wanting to walk through a street full of republican paintings/flags

The relationships between Protestants and Catholics, in quite a few parts of NI are still bitter and it will probably remain that way, even though it has gotten better over the years.

their very homophobic

their very homophobic

There could be more activities that promote diversity in areas which have an overall ethnic group, this would build tolerance and if anyone tried to stop/ruin the event then they could deal with the consequences e.g. jail time if they cause a riot. The activities shouldn’t just be held in schools but also in workplaces for adults to.

There is a very clear divide between protestant and Catholics in my area. I never come into contact with a lot of protestants as I’m more comfortable with my own or other religiously orientated people who aren’t protestants.

There is always gonna be trouble makers between religions. That’s why I'd personally feel more comfortable in a catholic community given that I identify my nationality as Irish.

There is little respect for the LGBT community. Irish language speakers. Not very accepting. Need to b aware that the use of the term Northern Ireland is contentious and I noticed the term used throughout.

There is no need for kerbs painted red, white and blue or union jacks everywhere, it is unnecessary and provocative.

There is still too much hostility between Catholics and protestants in NI. We are all people. A small number of bigots off-put others from wanting to mix with each other. I had a negative experience with hostility from a protestant and unfortunately this may have tainted my view. It is always more comfortable having 1 less issue in school workplace, but I do not want segregation.

There is still a small amount of prejudice amongst Catholics and protestants. However, it is largely between older generations, most of which were raised in the trouble era. For the most part, people with prejudice beliefs tend to pass it on to their children, making them very ignorant and do not help progress the religious or social tensions in a positive way. Despite being very uneducated about past events in Northern Ireland, many people my age (17) claim to have a dislike to protestants, without a valid reason. slurs such as "hun" or "orange man" are still thrown around without any sensitivity. Despite this, i personally feel that positive progress is being made in Northern Ireland in terms of social and religious matters.

There isn’t enough done to stop the sectarian that take place on the 11th night in July. For example, bonfires with sectarian phrases.

There may always be issues between Catholics and protestants because of the way children are brought up believing that your religion is the correct one.

there not equal

There needs to be more cross community events in rural areas

There should be more encouragement from the government/local councils to have strong community relations within Northern Ireland because by forging strong relationships in the community, the harder it will be for disputes to arise.

there should be more of them and I think they work very very well to bring people together

There will always be conflict between protestants and Catholics as everyone is stuck in the past, singing songs about things that happened hundreds of years ago.

There’s a lot to do in some communities.

There’s definite division but it's nowhere near as bad as it used to be.

There's nothing else I would like to say.

They are considerably better than they were many years ago, but there is still a long way to go until all these barriers are completely broken down.

They are getting better but there is still a divide across the country although this may not be as obvious as in previous years.

They are great except some people can be very proud about their religion and sometimes they can get out of hand e.g. attack other people about their religion as it is 'not right' for them to be in their space.

They are improving and will likely continue to improve; but will religion will always influence how others perceive each other.

They are still very segregated due to their upbringing

They are worsening. (between catholic and protestant communities) Neither community respects the other, especially young people. Neither respects each other because the political situation on each side are so different/want different things.

They can sometimes effect people’s social lives. The communities are so diverse sometimes that young children have prejudice views from very early on that it’s hard to change.

They have come a long way but could be improved more cross community events especially with children I post primary school.

They have improved somewhat in the past few years however there is still a lot of stigma between of some the communities

They never seem to get along with each other and always have something to say about them no matter what it is

They seem to be slowly improving and there is greater respect than I have ever seen

They should try and get more local young teens and kids involved in community relations.

They will never improve until there is a United Ireland. There should be more done to improve relations.

They will only continue to get worse with Arlene Foster and the DUP in power

They will ultimately get better, when there is more shared housing and education.

They've getting better but still a lot can be done to improve them more, children need to learn to not stereotype people from different religions and be brought up to like and respect them.

This might be odd but I personally believe all schools should be integrated as it would speed up I believe the division which has existed, still exist and will likely exist for the majority of my lifetime within Northern Ireland.

To have more respect for other members of the public like litter and smiling at someone when you are walking on a street etc…

Views of different communities are hidden by most people

way too much prejudice

We can’t just forget the past and move on we need to be educated about the troubles and what actually happened, the honest truth not some lies that have been created to make one side not seem so bad and cover what they have done. Maybe then we can understand each other and move on.

We need to continue to breakdown barriers, respect and get to know each other. Peace is our future.

We should all just get along

We should be making a better effort to improve them.

When we leave the EU I think that the relationships between Catholics and protestants in Northern Ireland will not be as positive as they are now

while community relations are good at the minute I fear Brexit and the Irish border could make the violence of the troubles come back.

While I personally don't feel prejudiced towards other religions, I think that more and more people are becoming hostile to people from other backgrounds and refugees

While I think that relations have improved, there will always be people who discriminate against members of their community because of their religion, ethic background or political opinion. There is too much history behind the divisions in Northern Ireland for there not to be.

Whilst peace walls are erected, there is always going to be lingering decision between two communities. Always going to be physically decided

Why are Catholics and protestants still fighting

Why bigots get more money than those who aren’t. Why our Politian’s are getting payed to do nothing

Within my dance community, being a highland dancer, I often collaborate with Irish dancers and work well with them often finding similarities

X

Years of austerity, Brexit uncertainty and stalemate at Stormont has caused community relationships to deteriorate and encouraged racist and religious hate crimes.

Yes, more could be done to help bring people together in a community and to get along with each other

Yes, the Sinn Fein representative from my town lives across from me and a had his card burnt out a few years back and there have also been union paramilitary members live on our street, all of which have been dealt with by police, however, this just shows how Northern Ireland can't escape the past, I have never seen any improvement in cross-community relationships

Young people should be allowed to vote and have their say as the decisions made will affect our future!

Young people are angry and feel like they are not being listened to

Youths don’t fight with each other because of religion, they just fight because young men like to fight, and there are less repercussions if you fight with someone from the other culture. 99% of my friends are one religion because of the school I attended, but I don’t know anyone who is really sectarian.

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