FROM COMMUNITY CONFLICTS TO COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
From community conflicts to community partnerships'
EXACTLY one year ago, Professor Mike Cowan left his home in New Orleans to board a flight to Dublin and from there, he took a bus to Omagh.
He did not have much time to spend in Omagh, but he did have a purpose, to communicate something of his extraordinary commitment to bringing people together, male and female, black and white, of all religions and none.
Why bring people together and to do what? How do we work with and through the deep divisions that polarise individuals, groups and communities in society? Do we tell people to forget the past and get on with the future or do we talk through the past until we have a future? These are some of the issues that Mike addressed in the Community Dialogue reconciliation event in Omagh Library last year.
Mike first came to Omagh through a heart-felt response to the impact of the bomb that shattered our community only three years ago. He will continue to visit Omagh and while he does so, Community Dialogue are delighted to host conversations between Mike and other people from the Omagh area and further afield.
Now, one year on, Mike is returning to Omagh and he will be joined by Rev. Leslie Carroll, the Moderator of the North Belfast Presbytery, Community Dialogue are hosting the conversation and it will take the form of a seminar called "From Community Conflicts to Community Partnerships".
This will take place on Monday, November 19, from 8pm to 10.30pm in the Conference Room of the newly-extended Tara Centre in Campsie, Omagh.
Leslie is well-known for her radio and television input and for her commitment to sharing between and within communities in North Belfast. Both Mike and Leslie are accomplished speakers and listeners and they will benefit from your attendance and participation just as much as you.
"We extend a welcome to those people who wish to question Mike, Leslie and each other, to those people who wish to listen and to those who may feel that we already have the solutions to challenges within and between our communities," said an organiser.
"All we ask is that you take the opportunity to hear what is being said and how it is being said. When we go back home, we return into the community that we are part of, does it matter to you?"
EXACTLY one year ago, Professor Mike Cowan left his home in New Orleans to board a flight to Dublin and from there, he took a bus to Omagh.
He did not have much time to spend in Omagh, but he did have a purpose, to communicate something of his extraordinary commitment to bringing people together, male and female, black and white, of all religions and none.
Why bring people together and to do what? How do we work with and through the deep divisions that polarise individuals, groups and communities in society? Do we tell people to forget the past and get on with the future or do we talk through the past until we have a future? These are some of the issues that Mike addressed in the Community Dialogue reconciliation event in Omagh Library last year.
Mike first came to Omagh through a heart-felt response to the impact of the bomb that shattered our community only three years ago. He will continue to visit Omagh and while he does so, Community Dialogue are delighted to host conversations between Mike and other people from the Omagh area and further afield.
Now, one year on, Mike is returning to Omagh and he will be joined by Rev. Leslie Carroll, the Moderator of the North Belfast Presbytery, Community Dialogue are hosting the conversation and it will take the form of a seminar called "From Community Conflicts to Community Partnerships".
This will take place on Monday, November 19, from 8pm to 10.30pm in the Conference Room of the newly-extended Tara Centre in Campsie, Omagh.
Leslie is well-known for her radio and television input and for her commitment to sharing between and within communities in North Belfast. Both Mike and Leslie are accomplished speakers and listeners and they will benefit from your attendance and participation just as much as you.
"We extend a welcome to those people who wish to question Mike, Leslie and each other, to those people who wish to listen and to those who may feel that we already have the solutions to challenges within and between our communities," said an organiser.
"All we ask is that you take the opportunity to hear what is being said and how it is being said. When we go back home, we return into the community that we are part of, does it matter to you?"
Further Information
Publisher: TYRONE CONSTITUTION
Ref: TC/0946
Published Date: 15-Nov-01
Related Images
There have been no images archived for this article.