Social Essays

On the morning of the 12th of July and with the bonfires now reduced to a pile of smoldering ashes, Loyal Orange Lodges march across Northern Ireland to commemorate the 318 year old battle. The bands that are hired to march in front of the Lodges at parades are often, though not always, associated with paramilitary organisations.
Their marches often disrupt the everyday existence of ordinary members of society by blocking off roads as they walk the "Queen's Highway" which they see as their god given right. Nationalists see these marches as a re-affirmation of religious and class divides of old and an attempt to display who is in charge whilst subjugating the Catholic members of society.
The debris and damage from the bonfires is another thing to consider. Councils bear the brunt of the clean up costs and the roads service is responsible for repairing the tarmac scorched and pitted by the bonfires. Added to this is the unknown costs to motorists who have suffered punctures and stone chip damage to the bodywork of their cars.
In the past the routes taken by the lodges have been been followed doggedly, now with the changing demographic of the North, marches have been re-routed and are monitored by the Parades Commission as some of the areas that they wish to march through have become largely Nationalist and marching through them would be provocative. The parades commission monitors all parades in the North of Ireland and applications have to be lodged one month in advance to ensure a peaceful outcome. (As an aside the annual Gay Pride is monitored and an application for this also has to be submitted).

Here members of a Lodge march past the remnants of a smoldering 'boney',