Northern Ireland needs to undergo seismic change to rid itself of sectarianism and racial hatred, a community relations expert said at a conference in Belfast today.
Chief executive of the Community Relations Council Duncan Morrow warned that without a fundamental rethink that mistakes made during years of conflict would be repeated.
The flight of over 100 Roma from their homes in south Belfast earlier this summer and the large number of sectarian divisions highlighted the problem, added Mr Morrow.
“It is seismic change we are talking about, not just a change in the weather that will go away,” he said.
He added there were 88 so-called peace walls, 40 Polish families forced out of their homes in south Belfast because of trouble at a football match with Northern Ireland and 65,000 school bus journeys diverted every week because of the risk people will throw rocks at them.
“Nor will it be possible to deal with this (division) without putting it into the core of the mainstream of what we do. We need to stop deluding ourselves that without significant change anything will happen," he added. "This is Einstein territory, the definition of madness is to do the same thing and expect a different result, the tragedy of it is that we continue doing the same thing.”
The Unite Against Hate event, which has been organised by the city council, is bringing together community, statutory and voluntary organisations along with keynote speakers from around the world.
Lord Mayor of Belfast Naomi Long said the negative headlines from earlier in the year would focus minds on the problem of hate crime.
“Sadly we all witnessed some recent examples of the racism that exists in our society; and while it may be only a small minority of people who hold these views, it marred the reputation of our city and sent out very negative messages across the world,” she said.
“But it’s not just racism that is a problem here in Belfast; the issue of hate crime is much wider and includes sectarianism, discrimination against people with a disability, or discrimination due to religious beliefs or sexual orientation.
“As Lord Mayor, my vision is of a Belfast without barriers that is welcoming for all. We live in a changing city which has become a melting pot of different cultures and religions, and rather than being negative, this is something to be embraced. But we can only do that through education and understanding and this convention aims to address some of the stereotypes and situations that lead to hate crime in our society.”
PA