Bank Holiday traffic met by black flag protest

Wexford town bank holiday traffic was treated to a piece of history last Saturday as local republicans held a black flag remembrance event in Redmond Square to mark the 32nd anniversary of the death of Bobby Sands.  Local Sinn Féin Cllr Anthony Kelly said that the event stirred real interest in people passing by, particularly young people, who seemed to know their history about Sands and the 1981 hunger strike.

Cllr Kelly said;

"Its encouraging to see the interest that people have in the iconic figure of Bobby Sands.  Young Wexford people in particular seemed extremely interested in the history of the 1981 hunger strike and the ultimate fate of the ten men who lost their lives in that terrible prison protest.  Thirty two years after his death Bobby Sands is as relevant as ever."

"People like Sands who were prepared to stand against tyranny are an inspiration for those who still make a stand against injustice today.  An attempt has been made to airbrush the history of the 1981 hunger strike from our culture.  It gets only a grudging mention in our childrens history sylabus.  Yet the figure of Bobby Sands is as recognisable as that of Che Guevarra or Hugo Sanchez.  What he stood for as not been airbrushed and never will be."

"Wexford Sinn Féin will be holding commemorations for each of the ten hunger strikers around the time of their individual anniversaries.  We invite people who  are in anyway interested in preserving the memory of the hungerstrikers to attend these memorials and to learn more about what caused ten young men to sacrifice their lives in 1981.  Details of upcoming events will be found at www.wexfordsinnfeinnews.blogspot.com in the coming weeks."