The 50th anniversary of 1968 Derry civil rights march commemorated this weekend

Today marks the 50th anniversary of the Duke Street civil rights march in Derry. Images of the Royal Ulster Constabulary brutally attacking unarmed demonstrators on 5 October 1968  were sent around the world. The true nature of the British colony in  the north-east of Ireland was exposed to a worldwide audience. The attacks on the Northern Ireland civil rights movement before and subsequent to the march on 5th October, resulted in a shift in peoples attitude. It brought to the fore those who pointed to the suppression of civil protest and the need for other methods to fight the inequalities that existed in the north-east of Ireland. Some have described the events of 5 October 1968 as the start of the so-called Troubles in the north of Ireland.

The most important organisation that was formed by various groups during the campaign for civil rights in the north of Ireland was the Northern Irish Civil Rights Association (NICRA), established in 1967. It campaigned for an end to discrimination in employment, in public housing, in electoral gerrymandering and an end to the Special Powers Act, a tool used by unionists to oppress the nationalist community in the north of Ireland.  The protest on 5th October 1968 was planned by the Derry Housing Action Committee (DHAC) with the support of the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association (NICRA). On 3 October 1968, the Stormont government  banned all parades, but organisations involved decided to go ahead with their parade. When the RUC blocked the intended route of the march and baton charged the crowd, the media were there to record it. Some of the most dramatic images showed protesters pleading with the police before being assaulted. In particular the footage captured by Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) of unprovoked police brutality on unarmed protesters would change the course of Northern Ireland forever.

A Commemoration March to mark the 50th anniversary of the historic Civil Rights March in Derry in 1968, begins at Duke Street at 3pm tomorrow, Saturday 6th October. Other events will be taking place in Derry this weekend, including Ireland's President Michael D Higgins, who will make a keynote address at the Civil Rights Festival in the Guildhall on Saturday.