Religious Segregation and Class in Northern Ireland

[Geekzilla]

While reading this article:
http://www.ijcv.org/docs/2008/schmid...hes_cairns.pdf
I read the following passage:
It should be noted that, although we
tried to minimize differences between the areas in terms
of social class, segregated and mixed areas differed in
terms of education and income, which were higher in
the mixed areas.

Why is this? Do middle-class people move out of areas that are targets of sectarian violence, leaving only those who can't move? Is it not typical of Northern Ireland in general?

[Tiernanator]

There was a study done awhile back at the U of Ulster that talked about the flight from working class areas such as Creggan and Anderstown. It showed that the Alliance supporters went first, then the sdlp and finally the Sinn Féin people. I would say that there is some evidence that this is the case. I certainly remember this happening with the Alliance party supporters and the sdlp and there are fewer Sinn Féin members living in housing estates or traditional area where one would expect people to live.

I am not saying that people should live in a particular area because of their political allegiance and perhaps the absence of threat is allowing people to move to areas they would not have considered even 10 years ago. A friend of mine a good socialist and republican said to me many decades ago that it is "the ordinary folk who pay the highest price, not the middle class". Even at the height of the troubles the middle class where I came from still had a fairly decent life. In fact many of my middle class friends have told me they could have lived in Dublin or Surrey for all they saw of the conflict while I saw and experienced the effects of it every single day. It makes you think.

[Geekzilla]

There was a study done awhile back at the U of Ulster that talked about the flight from working class areas such as Creggan and Anderstown. It showed that the Alliance supporters went first, then the sdlp and finally the Sinn Féin people. I would say that there is some evidence that this is the case. I certainly remember this happening with the Alliance party supporters and the sdlp and there are fewer Sinn Féin members living in housing estates or traditional area where one would expect people to live.

I am not saying that people should live in a particular area because of their political allegiance and perhaps the absence of threat is allowing people to move to areas they would not have considered even 10 years ago. A friend of mine a good socialist and republican said to me many decades ago that it is "the ordinary folk who pay the highest price, not the middle class". Even at the height of the troubles the middle class where I came from still had a fairly decent life. In fact many of my middle class friends have told me they could have lived in Dublin or Surrey for all they saw of the conflict while I saw and experienced the effects of it every single day. It makes you think.

The quote struck me in particular because in a debate on integrated education one poster (bullyee I think) said that integrated education was largely a middle class thing. He said that working-class pupils would be more at risk since they were more likely to live in areas of sectarian violence. I'm trying to get a grasp on the factors, not only the obvious one of nationalist/unionist but to get a better idea of what goes on.

[bullyee]

The alliance party had two councillors in West Belfast in the early eighties. Will and Pip Glendenning. It would be wrong to think that most of their voters along with the SDLP left the area. What happened was that Sinn Fein went more and more political and became more acceptable to those who had not supported the armed struggle. So voting patterns changed.
Catholics have moved from west in particularly to south Belfast over the last 20 years. These were from all parts of the nationalist spectrum. Indeed the ones that I know were republican but left for the leafy avenues of Stranmills, Malone, Harberton because they could afford it. They are part of the still growing Catholic middle class. Eg born nationalist and working class. Went to the local grammar, then Queens and became solicitors, doctors, dentists, engineers, teachers etc

What im trying to say is that there are no real identifiable trends to demographic changes out of the west. However this may change in the next few years. The cease fires have created an atmosphere where antisocial elements can do what ever they like. This would be the biggest influence for ordinary people wanting to get to fek out

[Tiernanator]

I have tried to find the name of the study. Sorry can't locate. However the theory was that no only did voting patterns and political affiliation change but people actually left their homes and moved elsewhere. I will keep searching for the study. If anyone has access to university thesis wbsites maybe they could do a search. Would love to read it again. It was really illuminating if totally factual.