Dr. Feargal Mac Ionnrachtaigh's 'Language, Resistance and Revival'
tells the untold story of the groundbreaking linguistic and
educational developments that took place among Republican prisoners in
Long Kesh prison between 1972-2000.
During a period of often bitter struggle between Republican prisoners and the British state, the Irish language was taught and spoken as a form of resistance during periods of imprisonment in the cages of Long Kesh (1972-1976), throughout the blanket protests in the H-Blocks (1976-81), and in the period just after the first and subsequent IRA ceasefires (1994-2000).
The book unearths this story through a series of interviews with prisoners, teachers and language activists, and analyses the rejuvenating impact it had on the cultural revival in the nationalist community beyond the prison walls.
During a period of often bitter struggle between Republican prisoners and the British state, the Irish language was taught and spoken as a form of resistance during periods of imprisonment in the cages of Long Kesh (1972-1976), throughout the blanket protests in the H-Blocks (1976-81), and in the period just after the first and subsequent IRA ceasefires (1994-2000).
The book unearths this story through a series of interviews with prisoners, teachers and language activists, and analyses the rejuvenating impact it had on the cultural revival in the nationalist community beyond the prison walls.
