Sean O'Reilly to reflect on Bloody Sunday in special concert in Liberty Hall

Derry writer, Sean O'Reilly, will reflect on his hometown's response to the British Government's apology for Bloody Sunday during a concert to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the civil rights movement in Liberty Hall on Saturday.
Bloody Sunday families.Bloody Sunday families.
Bloody Sunday families.

Buncrana fiddler and Magee College lecturer, Liz Doherty, meanwhile, will be among a host of acclaimed musicians, including Lankum, Niamh Parsons, Fintan Vallely and Tommy Sands, who will be performing at the 'We Shall Overcome' concert in the spiritual home of the Irish trade union movement tomorrow night.

Mr. O’Reilly, the author of 'The Swing of Things,' 'Love and Sleep' and 'Curfew', will deliver a reading on the "Derry response to the Bloody Sunday guilt admission," the organisers have said.

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Well-known figures from Irish entertainment and literary circles such as Bláthnid Ní Chofaigh and Theo Dorgan, will also take part.

The organisers stated: "At the time the Civil Rights movement began, politics always involved music. There was respect for ballads as carriers of information and stimulus to action; many fresh, topical songs were composed and performed.

"In addition, the revival of ‘traditional’ song and music was under way, a come-back of the sidelined cultural wealth of this island - a political movement itself that has had remarkable success.

"Today, the music that is used in politics is quite different, often in modern styles. Its range of topics now takes in environment, racism, healthcare, addiction and homelessness, and these are expressed in caustic and angry lyrics, and, often, new takes on old songs."

The location was chosen to emphasise "the role of trade unions and those campaigning for social justice in the history of that struggle".