JUDE COLLINS: John Hume was half-right with his Bloody Sunday quote

John Hume Was Half-Right About Bloody Sunday

Many people today feel detached from the events of Bloody Sunday in 1972. For those not born yet or living far from Derry and the Bogside, it has faded into history. But for the relatives of the victims — fathers, sons, uncles, aunts, cousins, and friends — the memory has never dimmed.

The emotional wound deepened last week when Soldier F was acquitted of all murder charges. It took fifty-three years to bring a British soldier to court for that day, and when it finally happened, the verdict was not guilty.

“Many people down there feel now it’s a united Ireland or nothing. Alienation is pretty total.”

— John Hume, as quoted by The Irish Times

Hume’s prediction on Irish reunification proved wrong — no united Ireland exists half a century later. Yet he was entirely right about alienation. The families of those killed feel only disillusionment and outrage after the verdict.

Following the court’s decision, the iconic Free Derry mural was altered to read: “There is no British justice.” The message captures the despair in Derry, as many find it hard to believe that, after the killings in Ballymurphy and then thirteen more deaths in the Bogside, justice remains elusive.

The Home Secretary at the time, Reginald Maudling, announced the British army “came under fire.”

For those who lived through it or lost loved ones, such statements feel like salt on an unhealed wound. Decades later, the events of Bloody Sunday continue to divide hearts and stir anger over justice denied.

Author’s summary:

The article reflects on the acquittal of Soldier F and reexamines John Hume’s remarks, concluding that while Irish unity has not come, alienation and grief still define Derry’s legacy of Bloody Sunday.

Belfast Media Group — 2025-11-02

John Hume Was Half-Right About Bloody Sunday

Author’s summary:

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