Talk:Bloody Sunday (1972): Difference between revisions
→Plea for a new attitude: new section |
|||
Line 290: | Line 290: | ||
:That website has copied from here. For example see [http://www.enteringfreederry.com/pages/about.htm this page] which is copied from [[Free Derry]], as is [http://www.enteringfreederry.com/pages/history.htm this page]. [[User:O Fenian|O Fenian]] ([[User talk:O Fenian|talk]]) 18:51, 25 August 2010 (UTC) |
:That website has copied from here. For example see [http://www.enteringfreederry.com/pages/about.htm this page] which is copied from [[Free Derry]], as is [http://www.enteringfreederry.com/pages/history.htm this page]. [[User:O Fenian|O Fenian]] ([[User talk:O Fenian|talk]]) 18:51, 25 August 2010 (UTC) |
||
::SO no copyvio. What about the other thing? Any suggestions? --[[User:Τασουλα|Τασουλα (Shalom!)]] ([[User talk:Τασουλα|talk]]) 20:03, 25 August 2010 (UTC) |
::SO no copyvio. What about the other thing? Any suggestions? --[[User:Τασουλα|Τασουλα (Shalom!)]] ([[User talk:Τασουλα|talk]]) 20:03, 25 August 2010 (UTC) |
||
== Plea for a new attitude == |
|||
When the notability and importance of this article is so great, it pains me to see it in such a state. There are 114 watchers of the page, yet the article has been fairly static, even after the release of Saville. While vandalism gets reverted quickly, it seems that the most involved editors are fairly happy with the state of the article currently. And when I say I am sad, I really mean that; I know you are all good people and mean well, but some things seem so obvious to me. It is not a personal attack when I say I believe the most involved editors on this page have strong pro-Republican views (would you disagree?), but the bottom line is those views have slanted the content of the article so that it is not, not even close, to being NPOV. |
|||
When "Just an interested reader" mentioned John Johnston as being injured, but not killed, as a result of his shooting that was just dismissed out of hand. And the rest of the article, infobox and everything, continues to state he died of his injuries later. That is absolutely NOT true based on all that this project holds dear as to RS. The statement '''The order to fire live rounds was given...''', with the implication that a command order was issued, is factually false (per Saville), yet is in there in the article (without any cite). And I am just so disappointed - do any of you think that the Paras firing indiscriminately without orders is less of an outrage than if they were ordered to do so? Yet in order to maintain the narrative that the Brits "wanted" this, it remains. |
|||
When you see a incendiary statement such as '''In addition, defenseless people who lay wounded on the ground were shot by soldiers who stood over them.''' perhaps a cite is in order? This issue was specifically examined in great detail by Saville. |
|||
Before, for decades, the events of the day were parsed into two distinct stories, without much middle ground. Now there is a source, the most extensive and detailed of any, to provide us with the most reliable version of the events of the day. So my question to all of you is: Do you accept Saville as the most accurate and neutral version, or not? That doesn't necessarily mean using that primary source exclusively, without inclusion of the traditional view of events from (all) the participants. |
|||
Beyond the POV of the content I am also deeply disappointed with the organization and prose. It sucks! Stylistically its a mishmash, with lots of repetition, and the section titles are horrible. We have two consecutive sections "2: Events of the day" and "3: Narrative of events" ...does that make any sense? None of this is anyone's "fault", all articles tend to have a 2nd Thermodynamic Law aspect to them and require extensive cleanup and rewrites on a regular basis, which hasn't seemed to have happened here in a long time. |
|||
I'm being as honest as I can be with my feelings, and would like to talk about it more, but I'm not interested in a fight. That's why I haven't done much editing previously to the article; to be frank, from what I saw from the Talk page and the edit history I thought it would be too painful to get involved and change what apparently is the status quo/consensus. And in this case I feel the consensus is wrong. |
|||
On the other hand, given the chance to vent I'm not sad anymore, so no worries...Cheers! [[User:LoveUxoxo|LoveUxoxo]] ([[User talk:LoveUxoxo|talk]]) 22:22, 15 April 2011 (UTC) |
Revision as of 22:22, 15 April 2011
This is the talk page for discussing improvements to the Bloody Sunday (1972) article. This is not a forum for general discussion of the article's subject. |
Article policies
|
Find sources: Google (books · news · scholar · free images · WP refs) · FENS · JSTOR · TWL |
Archives: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 |
This article has not yet been rated on Wikipedia's content assessment scale. It is of interest to the following WikiProjects: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Please add the quality rating to the {{WikiProject banner shell}} template instead of this project banner. See WP:PIQA for details.
Please add the quality rating to the {{WikiProject banner shell}} template instead of this project banner. See WP:PIQA for details.
Please add the quality rating to the {{WikiProject banner shell}} template instead of this project banner. See WP:PIQA for details.
|
A news item involving Bloody Sunday (1972) was featured on Wikipedia's Main Page in the In the news section on 15 June 2010. |
A fact from this article was featured on Wikipedia's Main Page in the On this day section on January 30, 2011. |
|
Unarmed?
Unarmed in the first paragraph? - has this ever been proven as a fact? What about the reports of sightings of stones/lethal nail bombs/ petrol bombs/snipers - do you count that as being unarmed? What about the fact that some of those present were members of the IRA?
There are many statements here which seem very POV, and this article deserves the POV tag. I am in agreement that is in need of some serious editing. Jonto 20:14, 16 July 2005 (UTC)
- In a city like Derry, of course some of those involved would have been members of the IRA. There also were members of the Nationalist Party, church leaders (Protestant and Roman Catholic), etc. Members of the IRA were as entitled as anyone else to march, once they were not breaking the law.
- As to the supposed sightings, they weren't as far as the evidence that has been presented goes, among the crowd. The crowd was unarmed. It was fired on. That is the issue. It is irrelevant whether others not part of the crowd that was fired at were armed or not. FearÉIREANN(caint) 20:39, 16 July 2005 (UTC)
Yes, but can it be proven definitely as to whether they were armed or not? If not, then I think "unarmed" should be removed if there is no concrete evidence; perhaps replaced with a term such as "thought to be unarmed" or "believed to be unarmed", rather than stating it as an outright fact.Jonto 20:53, 16 July 2005 (UTC)
The fact that not a single shot was fired at the paratroopers seems to substantiate the word "unarmed", I think. It doesn't strike me as particularly plausible that armed IRA men were fleeing like rabbits while their bretheren were being shot down.Bullzeye 07:09, 18 July 2005 [UTC]
The text doesn't actually say that everyone was unarmed, it just says that the people killed and wounded were unarmed. Sicking 23:51, 28 July 2005 (UTC)
- Good point. No one can say that all the marchers were unarmed, but it's an established fact that the ones who were shot were unarmed.thx1138 09:28, 2 February 2006 (UTC)
Should the first sentence also not also mention "after rioting at a civil rights march"?"Jonto 21:02, 16 July 2005 (UTC)
- No, because there was no riot. thx1138 09:28, 2 February 2006 (UTC)
All the dead tested negative for gunshot residue, There were IRA members,official and provisional at the march but they to were unarmed. Ivan cooper was promised that guns would stay away from the march by the IRA. The only weapons used by demonstrators were stones and bottles, and this was before the paras started shooting.--86.138.174.119 (talk) 23:08, 16 July 2009 (UTC)
- Not true. All the dead were subjected to the so-called "paraffin test" for lead particles, and the results were negative for five, positive for six, and inconclusive for two. Widgery thought that not all the positives were evidence that the individuals themselves had handled firearms, and even where they had, they weren't at the time they were shot. Even so, the validy of the tests is now called into question. Jim Wray, for example, worked on a production line that involved lead soldering, while others were probably cross-contaminated when their bodies were removed by the soldiers who had been firing.
- There wqere undoubtedly shots fired at the soldiers (e.g. the "drainpipe shot" and "Father Daly's gunman"), but these generally seem to be unco-ordinated and individual retaliations once the Paras had opened fire. Nick Cooper (talk) 09:46, 17 July 2009 (UTC)
- It's not a "so-called" paraffin test, the test involves using actual paraffin to lift residue from the skin. The test also has absolutely nothing to do with lead particles, it tests for nitrogen compounds from the powder. Unless the gun were to actually explode, any lead in the projectile leaves the front of the barrel rather than leaking from the chamber. It also is pretty much worthless as demonstrated by extensive testing after the Kennedy assassination. I'm changing the reference to lead in the article to "gunshot residue" which much more accurately describes the test.Vanhorn (talk) 07:21, 30 January 2010 (UTC)
- To quote the Widgery report:
- "66. The only other relevant forensic test applied to the deceased was the so-called paraffin test. When a firearm is discharged minute particles of lead are carried by the propellant gases. The particles carried forward through the muzzle may be deposited over a distance of 30 feet in front of the weapon. Some gases escape from the breach however, and deposit lead particles on the hands or clothing of the firer. This phenomenon is particularly marked with revolvers and automatic weapons and with bolt-action rifles if the bolt is withdrawn after firing. If swabs are taken from the firing hand of a man who has fired such a weapon they may be expected to show an even distribution of minute lead particles on the back of that hand and between the forefinger and thumb. Such a deposit, if not otherwise explained, is strong if not conclusive evidence of firing."
- It may be that widgery misattributed the specific test, but all the literature consistenty talks about the tests carried out being for lead, and the attendent problems when it comes to individuals such as James Wray. I am therefore reverting your change. Nick Cooper (talk) 10:53, 30 January 2010 (UTC)
- To quote the Widgery report:
Still very POV, pro republican, no wonder the education sector ban the use of Wikipedia :-( Twobells (talk) 10:49, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
- Are you talking about the article in general, or the specific issue under this heading? Nick Cooper (talk) 10:56, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
Hi Nick, sorry I didn't continue the debate on the POV tag last year(had my spleen removed after I collapsed :-() the article is MUCH better but I still feel the re isn't sufficient balance in the opening paragraph.Twobells (talk) 11:06, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
'Many witnesses, including bystanders and journalists, testify that all those shot were unarmed' but other witnesses state that some were armed yet the opening paragraph makes no mention of that and it still reads as a biased piece....Twobells (talk) 13:38, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
The IRA have also claimed that due to the high chance of being searched by police on the march, none carried weapons. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.148.47.146 (talk) 16:12, 30 March 2010 (UTC)
And we should take the IRA's word for it? Come off it! What if Al Queda claimed they hadn't carried out 9/11, would you take that at face value as well? —Preceding unsigned comment added by Wessexboy (talk • contribs) 16:33, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
Lord Saville's report says that they were unarmed end of discussion17.64.119.86 (talk) 15:46, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
Lord Saville's report didn't do this, it found that Gerard Dougherty had nail bombs on him at the time of his shooting, so to say that the 14 were unarmed is wrong. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 94.9.111.14 (talk) 17:50, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- While Saville stated that Gerald Donaghy was probably carrying nail bombs, that is largely irrelevant. Merely having them in his pocket would not have allowed the Paras to open fire, even if they had been aware of them being there. To all intents and purposes, he was unarmed since the definition is "Not carrying, using, or displaying arms". The use of the word "or" means not all three are required for someone to be unarmed, and Saville states he fulfills two of the requirements. If you would like to suggest a short piece of wording for the lead that includes this and at the same time makes it clear that nobody who was shot was holding a weapon please go right ahead, you may succeed where everyone else has failed. O Fenian (talk) 18:32, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- "you may succeed where everyone else has failed" Agreed, this is not easy, and we will have to work hard at this. Its the Lede, so I'd rather use unambiguous attributable statements that can be expanded upon later. I prefer:
- "none of whom was posing a threat of causing death or serious injury"
- as per Saville. LoveUxoxo (talk) 18:30, 29 June 2010 (UTC)
- Actually, using David Cameron's words would probably be best ("...none of the casualties shot by the soldiers of Support Company was armed with a firearm..."). LoveUxoxo (talk) 02:10, 30 June 2010 (UTC)
Banned march
The article is STILL POV, the fact the march was banned needs to be included in the first paragraph for balance.Twobells (talk) 11:02, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
'Twenty-seven civil rights protesters were shot by the British Army Parachute Regiment during a banned Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association march' would do it.Twobells (talk) 11:07, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
I cannot see why this fact is still after all this time not evident in the opening :-( Twobells (talk) 11:08, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
- IIRC, whhen this came up previously, this issue was that all marches and parades were covered by a blanket ban at the time. Describing it simply as a "banned march" could be taken to mean that it was the subject to specific controls, e.g. the march was proposed, then banned, but went ahead anyway. This sort of ambiguity is to be avoided, and the the actual circumstances are explained quite early in the page, anyway. Nick Cooper (talk) 11:27, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
Ok then how about: 'Twenty-seven civil rights protesters were shot by the British Army Parachute Regiment during a Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association march all of which were banned at that time'Twobells (talk) 13:34, 23 February 2010 (UTC) Or similar, otherwise people looking down the lens of history won't get an accurate understanding of the situation.Twobells (talk) 13:35, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
- Any idea that Twobells is looking at this article from a neutral perspective can be dismissed right now. See this disgraceful edit (which was classed as vandalism when his edit warring to maintain it was reported) where he mocks a living person saying the death threat he received "couldn't happen to a nicer guy".
- Even the Widgery Whitewash agrees that the status of the march was not relevant, unless Twobells is suggesting the punishment for taking part in a banned march is summary execution? O Fenian (talk) 16:59, 23 February 2010 (UTC)
- any version published on the 'Bloddy Sunday' event, is always seen as biased. i myself agree it was a tradgety waiting to happen. i didnt live through the 'troubles' but as a child id always been taught to forgive, forget & move on. why cant ireland do the same ? the many bloody days Ireland has seen, i think its time to work towards the future. the past is the past and mothing will change. but we have the oppertunity to make the future brighter for up coming children, for they are our future. but they are being brought up to see the opposite religion an enemy, when they should be a friend. forget the past and move on. when the love of friendship is grater than the love of power, ireland will know peace. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 86.131.242.196 (talk) 21:26, 25 February 2010 (UTC)
- Might I suggest 'illegal march'? Makes it clear it was banned, but does not imply any specific ruling against this particular march. Modest Genius talk 23:34, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
- You might suggest it, but the chances anybody taking it seriously are close to zero. If the "illegality" of the march is such an issue, how come neither the Saville Report nor the reaction to the report has focussed on it? Scolaire (talk) 07:44, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- In Vol. I, Chapter 2 "Outline of events before the day" of the Saville Report, Sections 2.8. 2.10, 2.11 and 2.12 reference, as background to the march, the ban on marching. A sentence or two in the background of events of the day in the article is essential to explain why did the match not go to the Guildhall as planned, why did many witnesses lie to Widgery about their involvement in the march, etc. LoveUxoxo (talk) 23:15, 4 July 2010 (UTC)
- The ban on marches is in the background section. What some people think is that the march being illegal should be in the lead for some reason. Most other editors cannot fathom what possible reason there is to mention it, since the penalty for taking part in an illegal march while unarmed is not summary execution. O Fenian (talk) 23:21, 4 July 2010 (UTC)
- Why do you think mentioning that the march was unlawful is some kind of justification for what happened? Strange reasoning. Mooretwin (talk) 09:12, 5 July 2010 (UTC)
- The ban on marches is in the background section. What some people think is that the march being illegal should be in the lead for some reason. Most other editors cannot fathom what possible reason there is to mention it, since the penalty for taking part in an illegal march while unarmed is not summary execution. O Fenian (talk) 23:21, 4 July 2010 (UTC)
Use of modified SLR
Just read the article at link #41 here which talks about the allegation that the army could have used a modified SLR that fired a .22 round rather than the standard 7.62. This modification was requested by Major General Robert Ford who wanted to start shooting dead rioters using the modified weapon. I have read lots about these events but this is new to me and it is not mentioned in this article or the Saville Enquiry either. Bjmullan (talk) 17:26, 1 May 2010 (UTC)
- That's not quite how it was. Ford's original memo ran:
- "I am coming to the conclusion that the minimum force necessary to achieve a restoration of law and order is to shoot selected ringleaders amongst the DYH, after clear warnings have been issued. I believe we would be justified in using 7.62-millimetre but, in view of the devastating effects of this weapon and the danger of rounds killing more than the person aimed at, I believe we must consider issuing rifles adapted to fire high velocity .22 ammunition to sufficient members of the unit dealing with this problem, to enable ringleaders to be engaged with this less lethal ammunition."
- It is clear that Ford was requesting the .22 rifles because they were less likely to be lethal. This was reiterated at Saville, as reported here:
- Clarke put it to the general: "The conclusion you were coming towards was that, after a warning, selected ringleaders of the DYH should be shot; is that right?" General Ford replied: "This was a suggestion I was putting to General Tuzo. The use of the .22 rifle instead of the 7.62 -- well, the .22 is said by the Ministry of Defence to be only `marginally lethal' -- those very words -- and also to be, elsewhere, `marginally lethal at 200 metres', I think.
- "So, I was suggesting, apparently -- I have no recollection of this at all, of course -- I was suggesting that this weapon, which had apparently been developed by the Ministry of Defence in the UK for possible use in Northern Ireland at the request of the previous GOC Northern Ireland, General Freeland, that we should look at the possibility of using it, well knowing that of course this would require major stages of preparation, retraining of tactics, and so on.
- "Of course, eventually it would have to go to the government who, no doubt, would seek legal advice."
- Ford is, however, mistaken in his recollection about why the SLR conversion was available, which was actually for training purposes, particularly at recruit level. The first experimental non-reversible conversions were carried out in 1959 - long before the Troubles - but not brought into service. A reversible conversion kit suitable for British imperial measure rifles was manufactured by Heckler & Koch (based on their kit for the metric SLR used by the Germany army) in the 1970s - details here and here. Nick Cooper (talk) 12:45, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
Derry/Londonderry
Hey, I just made a quick edit so that the Derry/Londonderry controversy mentioned in the article, acturally appears in the article. Now I know that Derry auto-links Londonderry when linked in wikipedia, and I'm not trying to step on anyone's perceptions, I just put in a Derry}Londonderyy so the paragraph looks right.155.91.28.232 (talk) 16:41, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
Picture
The first picture on the right - needs to be way way more neutral. "The Day Innocence Died"? Yohan euan o4 (talk) 18:07, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
Fair use images of the massacre
I know there were images of the massacre as they've become somewhat iconic images. Is there any that we could justifiably use under 'fair use' criteria. All the images, while valuable are retrospective subjects such as murals.Mtaylor848 (talk) 18:19, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
- Can I suggest the original image of Fr Edward Daly waving a white handkerchief (ie the photo that the mural further down in the page is based on)? It is a widely recognised image of the incident. --Kwekubo (talk) 19:27, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
- I've decided to be WP:BOLD, so I've uploaded this image and added it to the infobox citing fair use. --Kwekubo (talk) 19:58, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
- I think it is highly unlikely that this is a fair use case. It should be tagged for review, and then removed if it is a copyvio. --cbdorsett (talk) 04:54, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- I see no reason why it should not be fair use. An image of the incident can be used under fair use criteria if it helps illutstrate the article and there is no free alternative. There can surely be no doubt it has met the first criteria. The second, I suppose could be argued otherwise (that the mural would do the same), although I would not accept this argument myself as the mural is a fairly poor interpretation, would be unsuitable as a lead image as its a Republican mural and therefore in breach of NPOV if used as the lead image and it has much less impact. Looking through other conflicts and such, images have been used in the same way.Mtaylor848 (talk) 08:51, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- I think it is highly unlikely that this is a fair use case. It should be tagged for review, and then removed if it is a copyvio. --cbdorsett (talk) 04:54, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- Actually, the mural is not free either. I don't remember where it's set out, but photographs of two-dimensional works of are are not free in the way that photographs of three-dimensional works of art are. Scolaire (talk) 10:03, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- The mural is free, it is a permanent fixture therefore is subject to freedom of panorama. Of course, what is permamnent is debatable, and when the two-dimensional image becomes the feature of the picture rather than featured in the picture. If this were true there could be no images of murals, shop signs, road signs, street signs, public notices or any such thing on commons.Mtaylor848 (talk) 19:52, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
I've found this and this on the Imperial War Museum's collection. Could we upload one or both as "fair use" similar to A and B? ~Asarlaí 23:58, 22 December 2010 (UTC)
- Neither of those would meet the non-free content criteria on this article, and personally I'd dispute the rationales on the existing images if I could be bothered. 2 lines of K303 12:55, 23 December 2010 (UTC)
Apology in the lead section
There is too much detail regarding the apology in the opening paragraphs. 'The British Government later apologised for the event' would do for the opening section. Details of the apology should be further down the article.Mtaylor848 (talk) 19:16, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
Naming the city
Looking at this article, to begin with I found it awkward that the city is called "Derry" throughout, given that all the news sources about the Saville inquiry are calling it Londonderry. But then I came upon this:
- Derry (whose very name was in contention, being referred to as Londonderry by unionists),
Seriously? This is obviously backwards. Londonderry is the official name. The unionists are just calling it by its official name; it is the nationalists who have their own name for it. They have every right to call it whatever they want, but the wikipedia name compromise has resulted in a nonsensical sentence which reverses the actual nature of what's going on. john k (talk) 19:19, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
- Removed per WP:TOPIC. Thanks. --John (talk) 19:22, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
To be honest, I think the name 'Londonderry' should be used on all articles. It is the official name and the name-conflict is a recent thing. I've decided never to go to Londonderry because whatever I call the city I'll cause offence. That said, the naming argument is one I'm not going to get into, there are pages and pages of this and it will continue ad infinitum. This page is not really the page on which to explain the naming argument.Mtaylor848 (talk) 08:55, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- WP:IMOS covers this in WP:DERRY/WP:LDERRY: Use Derry for the city and County Londonderry for the county in articles.Autarch (talk) 16:37, 17 June 2010 (UTC)
Current event tag
I just undid the addition of the {{current}} template. The template states that it is a current event. Yes, there are issues coming up about it right now, but that tag is misleading in this context. If anyone would like it added back please discuss here. Jujutacular T · C 19:50, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
Problems with the numbers
I've amended the numbers, as it seems some confusion has crept in regarding the total. Twenty-six people were shot, of whom thirteen died on the day, but one of the injured - John Johnson - died several months later. It seems in the past someone added the number of fatalities - i.e. fourteen - to the number of injured - i.e. thirteen - even though one of the latter is also one of the former. I've also changed the reference to all those who were shot being protesters, as John Johnson at least was not. Nick Cooper (talk) 22:11, 15 June 2010 (UTC)
Copyright violation removed
Despite the assertion on my talk page and in an edit summary that an official report cannot be copyrighted, the report is copyrighted and to claim otherwise displays a shocking ignorance of copyright law. The page it was copied and pasted from has a copyright message at the bottom. O Fenian (talk) 10:11, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- I'm a passerby and unfamiliar with the development of the article. I wonder, though, if some of the copyright confusion arises from the difference between the U.S., where the government holds no copyright at all to material it produces, and the U.K., where the government has crown copyright? From my work life, I have the impression this is not widely known in the U.S. --- OtherDave (talk) 12:29, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
"The dead" section
At present this includes various witness statements and conclusions from Widgery about them being unarmed. As it is now accepted by everyone except the people that shot them that these people were unarmed, perhaps this information can be removed? O Fenian (talk) 10:47, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- Would it not be useful to keep these details, as in a number of cases they refer to the number of witness and/or photographs that even at Widgery showed they were unarmed? There seems a perception in some quarters that all of the dead have only just been exonerated now, when in fact many of them were even in 1972. Nick Cooper (talk) 11:02, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- I see your point. Perhaps a separate section for the Widgery report is needed, it does seem to be lacking at present? O Fenian (talk) 11:14, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- That might be the way forward. I'm currently compiling a table of the differences between the attribution of shots between Widgery and Saville as per the narrative page, which I'll post on the Talk page there. Nick Cooper (talk) 11:41, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- In the interest of balance I think a separate section is a good idea, also in the interest of balance would a separate article on the Widgery Tribunal also be a good idea? --Wintonian (talk) 13:15, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- I think a separate article on Widgery is not really needed at present, one can always be created later if the amount of material on it in this article becomes too large. O Fenian (talk) 09:50, 17 June 2010 (UTC)
- In the interest of balance I think a separate section is a good idea, also in the interest of balance would a separate article on the Widgery Tribunal also be a good idea? --Wintonian (talk) 13:15, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- That might be the way forward. I'm currently compiling a table of the differences between the attribution of shots between Widgery and Saville as per the narrative page, which I'll post on the Talk page there. Nick Cooper (talk) 11:41, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- I see your point. Perhaps a separate section for the Widgery report is needed, it does seem to be lacking at present? O Fenian (talk) 11:14, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
Summarising the dead and injured
Having now gone through Saville's narrative, apart from the thirteen either shot dead or who died on the day, there are 16 injured, as follows:
- 1 = Shot, died later (John Johnson)
- 12 = Shot
- 1 = Possibly shot - slight injury (Daniel Gillespie)
- 2 = Hit by debris caused by rifle fire
- 2 = Hit by vehicle (Alana Burke & Thomas Harkin)
Widgery listed 13 injured by gunfire, which included John Johnson, who was still alive at the time. One on Widgery's list (Patrick McDaid) Saville actually attributes to debris, while the other injured by it (Pius McCarron) was not on Widgery's list, and neither were Patrick Brolly & Daniel Gillespie. In summary, 26 people were shot, with 13 dying on the day, and one 4½ months later; two were injured by debris caused by gunfire; one by gunfire or debris; and two from vehicle impact. The number actually shot was either 26 or 27. Nick Cooper (talk) 14:16, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
Suggested re-organisation
At the moment the article seems to be in a bit of mess. I suggest the following:
- The current text in "Events of the day" is integrated into the appropriate place in the "Narrative of events" section, which would then be titled "Events of the day".
- The information on Widgery from "Perspectives and analyses on the day" is moved out of there and into a new "Widgery report" (title as yet undecided, see point 5 below), which would also be expanded slightly.
- Various information from "The dead" is moved into the Widgery section
- Possibly move the inquest part from "Perspectives and analyses on the day" into the Widgery section and re-title it accordingly? It seems the best place for it, since there is not really enough for a section of its own.
- Various other information from "Perspectives and analyses on the day" (British embassy being burned down, Devlin and so on) is moved to a "Reactions" section which comes before Widgery. Anything left in that section that does not seem to fit anywhere at present can be temporarily removed.
- Add a section about the 20+ year campaign for a new inquiry, which would go before the Saville section obviously.
There are probably some other things to do as well, I think this would be a good start though. Any thoughts? O Fenian (talk) 16:16, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
White hankerchief
A mask used by rioters in Northern Ireland Hcmd hcmdhcmd (talk contribs) 17:54, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- A piece of cloth used to wipe one's nose, even today. I have many. Nick Cooper (talk) 07:23, 17 June 2010 (UTC)
- Also worn around the arm as identification by the stewards of the march LoveUxoxo (talk) 18:19, 29 June 2010 (UTC)
Death of John Johnston
The Saville Enquiry concluded that John Johnston died of a brain tumour and therefore I don't think he should be listed as one of the deaths on Bloody Sunday. His family maintain that the head injury he suffered when he fell after being shot was responsible, but that seems medically impossible. Brain tumours can happen for no known reason and can kill quickly, so I highly doubt his death in June 1972 was connected to the shooting. We should include Johnston as one of the wounded, not one of the murdered. ---Just an interested reader
(UTC)
- His family were informed by a specialist that the tumour had developed rapidly and that it could have been caused by a heavy fall. Coincidentally, he hit his head on the pavement after being shot. O Fenian (talk) 18:25, 16 June 2010 (UTC)
- In his statements to the RUC, the Sunday Times and written submission and oral testimony to the Widgery Inquiry at no point does John Johnston say that he fell. His medical records when admitted to Altnagevin Hospital show no record of head injury. The evidence as a whole shows is that John Johnston stumbled, but did not fall, after being shot. Even if he did fall, the fact that a specialist stated that the tumor "could" have been caused by a fall does not make it correct to state, as fact, in the article that the cause of death was the wounds he suffered on Bloody Sunday. Obviously, for many, John Johnston is considered the 14th victim of that day (see the mural in the article currently), so we should reference that in the article. However it is not by the due weight of verifiable and reliable sources true, and should not be stated as such in the article. Cheers! LoveUxoxo (talk) 22:50, 4 July 2010 (UTC)
number of victims
the article says 14 and the main page says 27... --77.126.247.143 (talk) 04:30, 17 June 2010 (UTC)
- Twenty-seven people were shot; fourteen died. Scolaire (talk) 06:46, 17 June 2010 (UTC)
- As per my post above, 13 dead on the day, 16 injured, one of whom died later. Not all injuries are to gunfire. Either 26 or 27 were directly shot. Nick Cooper (talk) 07:27, 17 June 2010 (UTC)
- Well, it depends on who you consider "injured". Currently the article considers only those hit by gunfire or vehicles, not those hit by baton rounds, or clubbed. Many of those people required (or should have received) medical attention as well for their injuries. LoveUxoxo (talk) 22:55, 4 July 2010 (UTC)
Attribution of injuries - Saville Vs Widgery
Now at Talk:Narrative of events of Bloody Sunday (1972)#Saville Vs Widgery. Nick Cooper (talk) 07:56, 17 June 2010 (UTC)
Unjustified and Unjustifiable
I beleive this is actually a quote from David Cameron's apology in the house of commons not the actual report, as i saw him saying it on the TV news. Although he may himself have been quoting the final report from the inquiry. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 81.151.176.71 (talk) 03:30, 18 June 2010 (UTC)
- I believe you are correct and the lede should be corrected. LoveUxoxo (talk) 22:52, 4 July 2010 (UTC)
Change "The dead" section to "Casualties"
[
This section needs to be updated with more recent and comprehensive sources (i.e. Saville), that should be given more weight than previous sources. It should be organised in some way (chronologically seems to me to be intuitive). In addtion, it should be grouped by location, since, to some extent, the various shooting incidents were seperate, discreet events. Also it should include all gunfire casualties; as Saville put it:
In addition to those killed, people were also injured by Army gunfire on Bloody Sunday. We took the view at the outset that it would be artificial in the extreme to ignore the injured, since those shooting incidents in the main took place in the same circumstances, at the same times and in the same places as those causing fatal injuries.
So much the same for Saville, this article can only accurately depict the shootings by included those also injured by gunfire. For below each subsection gives a quick description of how the soldiers got there, what they said they say saw/why they fired, and who they claimed to hit (for now ignoring what currently exists as lead-in in the "Narrative of events" section assuming that will have to be re-written being chronologically jumbled and factually inaccurate). Underneath are listed the victims, with their name, age, where they were shot, what they were doing in at the time they were shot, and whether they were, in fact, doing what the soldiers said they were. It would be remiss to not state that John Johnston was walking away from the march and rioters when shot (very much an innocent bystander). It would also be remiss, and POV, not to state Michael Bridge's actions immediately before being shot. What Bridge was doing did not justify his being shot, but obviously is essential in understanding his shooting. I think in the past there has been the reluctance by many to admit to any stone throwing, or any gunfire by the OIRA or PIRA, as not to give the Paras any (incorrect) justification for firing. So here is what I propose (to be fully sourced and completed):
Casualties
The firing by soldiers of 1 Para on Bloody Sunday caused the deaths of 13 people and injury to 13 more.[1]
Williams Street
Around 3:55 pm[2] the first shootings occurred near Williams Street. Two soldiers at an observation post fired a total of five shots at Damien Donaghey[3] who they stated had lit and was about to throw a nail bomb.[4]
Wounded
- Damien Donaghey; 15, shot in the thigh.[3] While Donaghey had been throwing stones at the soldiers[4] neither Donaghey nor anyone else had thrown or was about to throw a nail bomb.[5]
- John Johnston; 59,[6] shot through the leg, shoulder and grazed on his hand.[7] Observing CS gas ahead, Johnston had left the march and was headed to Glenfada Park[6] when hit by the gunfire aimed at Damien Donaghey.[3] Johnston died 4½ months later from a brain tumor;[8] many attributed this to injuries he suffered on Bloody Sunday and considered him the 14th fatality.[9][10] Saville found that his death was unrelated to the wounds he suffered on that day.[8]
Rossville Flats car park
At 4:07 pm orders were given for a single company of 1 Para to conduct an arrest operation of rioters.[11] Soldiers in an APC drove to the entrance Rossville Flats car park and disembarked. While a few people, both on the ground and on the balconies of the Rossville Flats, then started to throw stone, bottles and other missiles at the soldiers, most people in the car park were attempting to flee,[12], and they rapidly dispersed.[13]
The soldiers from the APC, as well as several following on foot, stated that they came under heavy fire from gunmen and bombers.[14] They returned fire with 29 shots claiming to have hit three nail or blast bombers, one petrol bomber, one man with a pistol and two or three men with rifles or carbines.[15]
Killed
- John (Jackie) Duddy; 17, shot in the upper chest. Duddy was running away from the soldiers when hit. Photographs of the mortally wounded Duddy receiving the last rites from Father Edward Daly, then being carried by bystanders as Daly waved a blood-stained handkerchief, became some of the iconic images of the day. Duddy, like all the casualties in the car park, was unarmed and not posing a lethal threat to the soldiers when shot.
Wounded
- Margaret Deery; 38, shot in the thigh. Deery, who had been on the march, was going through the car park trying to get away from the rioting when shot by a nearby soldier.
- Michael Bridge; 25, shot in the thigh. Bridge, who earlier had been acting as one of the stewards of the march, became enraged at the sight of the mortally wounded Duddy, and, after throwing a brick at the soldiers, challenged them to shoot him as well.
- Michael Bradley; 22, wounded in both arms and chest. A friend of John Duddy, Bradley was probably throwing stones at the soldiers when hit.
- Patrick Brolly; 40, wounded in the head. After having left the march, Brolly was in a bedroom on the second floor of the Rosville Flats when grazed by a bullet.
- Pius McCarron; 30, wounded in the head. McCarron was running away when hit by masonry dislodged by a ricochet.
- Patrick McDaid; 24, wounded in the head. McDaid was trying to run away from the soldiers when hit by shrapnel.
Rossville Street barricade
(and so on)
- ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume I – Chapter 5 - Section 5.5". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
5.5 The firing by soldiers of 1 PARA on Bloody Sunday caused the deaths of 13 people and injury to a similar number, none of whom was posing a threat of causing death or serious injury.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume II – Chapter 18 - Section 18.8". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
18.8 Although some civilian witnesses put the shooting of Damien Donaghey and John Johnston as early as 3.40pm, and some as late as well after 4.00pm, we are satisfied that this incident in fact occurred at, or shortly after, 3.55pm.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ a b c "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume I – Chapter 03 - Section 3.10". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
3.10 ...two soldiers of Machine Gun Platoon fired between them five shots from the derelict building on William Street, shown on the map below. Their target was Damien Donaghey (aged 15), who was on the other side of William Street and who was wounded in the thigh. Unknown to the soldiers John Johnston (aged 55), who was a little distance behind Damien Donaghey, was also hit and injured by fragments from this gunfire.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ a b "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume I – Chapter 03 - Section 3.86". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
3.86 The evidence of Corporal A and Private B was that the person they shot was about to throw a nail bomb in their direction. This was not the case, though Damien Donaghey had previously been throwing stones at the soldiers and might have been about to do so again.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume II – Chapter 18 - Section 3.10". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
18.169 We are also sure that neither Damien Donaghey nor anyone else had thrown or was about to throw a nail or gelignite bomb or similar device and that he and John Johnston were the only people hit by gunfire from Corporal A or Private B.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ a b "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume II – Chapter 18 - Section 18.4". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
18.4 John Johnston was 59 years old at the time of Bloody Sunday. He was the manager of a local drapery store. He had been taking part in the march but on his way down William Street he saw clouds of CS gas ahead and decided to cut south across the laundry waste ground in order to visit an old man in the area of Glenfada Park.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume II – Chapter 18 - Section 18.6". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
18.6 John Johnston suffered "through and through " gunshot wounds to his right leg and his left shoulder and a graze to his right hand.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ a b "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume II – Chapter 18 - Section 18.7". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
18.7 John Johnston died in hospital on 16th June 1972 from an inoperable cerebral tumour. It was suggested that his death was caused or contributed to by a head injury sustained when he fell after being shot. However, the weight of the evidence (and John Johnston's own account to the Sunday Times) is to the effect that although he stumbled, he did not in fact fall when he was hit. He was discharged from Altnagelvin Hospital on 10th February 1972 having made, according to the surgeon Mr Bennett, an "excellent recovery " from "comparatively minor " injuries. We are satisfied that John Johnston's death was not the result of any of the wounds he sustained on Bloody Sunday.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Bloody Sunday report: the victims". The Guardian. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
Shot in the leg and left shoulder on William Street 15 minutes before the rest of the shooting started, Johnston was not on the march, but on his way to visit a friend in Glenfada Park. He died four and a half months later. The 59-year-old's death has been attributed to the injuries he received. He was the only person not to die immediately or soon after being shot.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "'Bloody Sunday', Derry 30 January 1972 - Names of the Dead and Injured". CAIN Web Service. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
John Johnson was shot twice on 30 January 1972 and died on 16 June 1972. His family is convinced that he died prematurely and that his death was due to the injuries received and trauma he underwent on 'Bloody Sunday'.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume I – Chapter 03 - Section 3.14". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
3.14 At 1607 hours Brigadier MacLellan gave 1 PARA orders by radio to mount an arrest operation by sending one company of 1 PARA through Barrier 14 in William Street, but not to conduct a running battle down Rossville Street. In its context, the prohibition on conducting a running battle down Rossville Street meant that the soldiers were not to chase people down that street.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume III – Chapter 46 - Section 46.75". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
46.75 It is clear from the evidence of both soldiers and civilians that the rioting in the car park started as soon as, or immediately after, Sergeant O's APC had arrived there. It took the form of people both at ground level and from the balconies of Blocks 1 and 2 of the Rossville Flats throwing stones, bottles and similar missiles at the soldiers and at Sergeant O's APC.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume III – Chapter 46 - Section 46.78". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
After the arrival of the soldiers, the crowd in the Rossville Flats car park rapidly dispersed, though a few people took cover behind the low wall that ran along the northern side of Block 2 of the Rossville Flats; and others behind the wall of the southernmost house on the eastern side of Chamberlain Street. As we describe later in this report,1it was shortly after their arrival in the car park that soldiers opened fire and Jackie Duddy was killed. The car park then rapidly became deserted, except for those tending Jackie Duddy.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume III – Chapter 54 - Section 54.1". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
54.1 If the accounts of the soldiers of Mortar Platoon are taken at face value, their vehicles were fired on as they entered the Bogside; the soldiers from Lieutenant N's APC were fired on as they disembarked or soon afterwards; firing was directed towards soldiers soon after they disembarked from Sergeant O's APC in Rossville Street and as they were conducting arrests; and soon after Sergeant O had arrested William John Doherty near to his APC in the car park, the soldiers came under substantial fire from a variety of firearms for some three to four minutes, as well as being subjected to an exploding nail bomb and a number of acid bombs. There were in addition unsuccessful attempts to throw two nail bombs and a petrol bomb.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help) - ^ "Report of the The Bloody Sunday Inquiry – Volume III – Chapter 52 - Section 52.12". Bloody Sunday Inquiry. 15 June 2010. Retrieved 04 July 2010.
52.12 On the basis of these accounts, leaving aside Corporal P and Private U, whose evidence we consider in the context of Sector 3, the soldiers of Mortar Platoon fired 32 shots, hitting three nail or blast bombers, one petrol bomber, one man with a pistol, and two or three men with rifles or carbines, while missing an acid bomber, and probably missing another man with a pistol and another man with a carbine.
{{cite web}}
: Check date values in:|accessdate=
(help)
Please give any comments or questions. Cheers! LoveUxoxo (talk) 16:42, 4 July 2010 (UTC)]
The Dead.
Urgh, I do not wish to bring this up but I would like to check - The entire section seems to be a copy/paste out of [2] I am not sure about copyrights, but I am assuming it is not a violation or something under some agreement, but just looking. And my main concern is the section looks like a memorial, which isn't really allowed, perhaps remove the Italics and add standard "*" (Wich would be a Square in wiki format) instead of those circles? --Τασουλα (Shalom!) (talk) 14:10, 25 August 2010 (UTC)
- That website has copied from here. For example see this page which is copied from Free Derry, as is this page. O Fenian (talk) 18:51, 25 August 2010 (UTC)
- SO no copyvio. What about the other thing? Any suggestions? --Τασουλα (Shalom!) (talk) 20:03, 25 August 2010 (UTC)
Plea for a new attitude
When the notability and importance of this article is so great, it pains me to see it in such a state. There are 114 watchers of the page, yet the article has been fairly static, even after the release of Saville. While vandalism gets reverted quickly, it seems that the most involved editors are fairly happy with the state of the article currently. And when I say I am sad, I really mean that; I know you are all good people and mean well, but some things seem so obvious to me. It is not a personal attack when I say I believe the most involved editors on this page have strong pro-Republican views (would you disagree?), but the bottom line is those views have slanted the content of the article so that it is not, not even close, to being NPOV.
When "Just an interested reader" mentioned John Johnston as being injured, but not killed, as a result of his shooting that was just dismissed out of hand. And the rest of the article, infobox and everything, continues to state he died of his injuries later. That is absolutely NOT true based on all that this project holds dear as to RS. The statement The order to fire live rounds was given..., with the implication that a command order was issued, is factually false (per Saville), yet is in there in the article (without any cite). And I am just so disappointed - do any of you think that the Paras firing indiscriminately without orders is less of an outrage than if they were ordered to do so? Yet in order to maintain the narrative that the Brits "wanted" this, it remains. When you see a incendiary statement such as In addition, defenseless people who lay wounded on the ground were shot by soldiers who stood over them. perhaps a cite is in order? This issue was specifically examined in great detail by Saville.
Before, for decades, the events of the day were parsed into two distinct stories, without much middle ground. Now there is a source, the most extensive and detailed of any, to provide us with the most reliable version of the events of the day. So my question to all of you is: Do you accept Saville as the most accurate and neutral version, or not? That doesn't necessarily mean using that primary source exclusively, without inclusion of the traditional view of events from (all) the participants.
Beyond the POV of the content I am also deeply disappointed with the organization and prose. It sucks! Stylistically its a mishmash, with lots of repetition, and the section titles are horrible. We have two consecutive sections "2: Events of the day" and "3: Narrative of events" ...does that make any sense? None of this is anyone's "fault", all articles tend to have a 2nd Thermodynamic Law aspect to them and require extensive cleanup and rewrites on a regular basis, which hasn't seemed to have happened here in a long time.
I'm being as honest as I can be with my feelings, and would like to talk about it more, but I'm not interested in a fight. That's why I haven't done much editing previously to the article; to be frank, from what I saw from the Talk page and the edit history I thought it would be too painful to get involved and change what apparently is the status quo/consensus. And in this case I feel the consensus is wrong.
On the other hand, given the chance to vent I'm not sad anymore, so no worries...Cheers! LoveUxoxo (talk) 22:22, 15 April 2011 (UTC)
- B-Class Northern Ireland-related articles
- High-importance Northern Ireland-related articles
- All WikiProject Northern Ireland pages
- Unassessed Disaster management articles
- Unknown-importance Disaster management articles
- B-Class Irish republicanism articles
- High-importance Irish republicanism articles
- WikiProject Irish republicanism articles
- B-Class Ireland articles
- High-importance Ireland articles
- B-Class Ireland articles of High-importance
- Ireland articles needing infoboxes
- All WikiProject Ireland pages
- Wikipedia In the news articles
- Selected anniversaries (January 2011)