First published 2013 by Pluto Press
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Copyright Tony Novosel 2013
The right of Tony Novosel to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
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ISBN 978 0 7453 3310 6 Hardback
ISBN 978 0 7453 3309 0 Paperback
ISBN 978 1 8496 4806 6 PDF eBook
ISBN 978 1 8496 4808 0 Kindle eBook
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One of the great lessons out of this whole [Northern Ireland Peace Process] process, which may be incidental to the result, but nonetheless important in human terms, is the capacity for personal redemption. The ability of people who have made serious, tragic errors, violent errors, committed brutal atrocities; to accept responsibility, to be punished for it, to accept their punishment and then to change, genuinely change.
George Mitchell
Acknowledgements
Any time anyone takes on a project of this scope there is no way the author can take full credit for the completed work. I received a great deal of help from many people, from those who supplied me with moral support to those who read various versions of this manuscript. This is my humble attempt to thank them all.
I cannot thank my partner, Alice Cottone, enough. She has been amazing throughout the whole writing process over the past two years and she has been a rock. She gave me the space to do my ten- to twelve-hour writing days; many times bringing over food or making sure I stepped away from the manuscript when necessary. Without her support, there is no way I could have finished this book.
A special thanks goes out to all those who agreed to do interviews. They gave up freely of their time, providing insights and first-hand knowledge of this period.
Billy Hutchinson was absolutely crucial to this work. It was my chat in 2007 with Billy that refocused me and convinced me to continue with this work. His intervention was also crucial in getting access to individuals and materials that underpin this work.
I can never repay William Mitchell, Aaron Edwards, Richard Reed and Sean Brennan for the amount of time and work they put in with me. They read through various parts and/or all of the manuscript, even while doing work on their own Ph.D.s and/or holding down full-time jobs. Each of them also gave up their time to meet and talk at length about this work.
Mark Williamson deserves many thanks. He arranged a talk for me in October of 2009 on the Shankill Road, which then led to a series of talks over the next two years. This proved invaluable as it enabled me to organise and create the structure of this book.
Dawn Purvis deserves special mention here also. Beyond providing me with an interview, she also went out of her way to meet with me and talk for hours with me about this work.
It is safe to say, that without Roy Garland, his work on Spence and his help this book would not exist. Roys personal encouragement, his comments, and help with materials were essential for this effort.
Graham Spencer and Peter Shirlow deserve special mention. Their work inspired me to begin this project and also informed my analysis. Both provided a great deal of help in the formulation of this work, especially my proposal.
Henry Sinnerton was also a great help. Henrys work on David Ervine helped me a great deal as did the many discussions we had together.
I must also include Graham Walker and Eamon Phoenix here. Grahams friendship, encouragement, and work on Unionism have been invaluable. Eamons support throughout has been crucial to my staying focused on this work.
To Big Jon McCourt what can I say? He and I have spent many hours together talking and talking about everything related to the politics and history of Northern Ireland/Ireland. These meetings were so important to my knowledge and my development.
To Jeanette and Mark Ervine, who spent so much time sharing their lives with me, thank you so much. Your friendship and help was invaluable.
I want to thank Monica McWilliams. Her belief in me and her great support over the years has made all the difference. Thank you.
Harry Donaghy and all those around the Messines Project in Belfast deserve special mention. Many is the time I sat with Harry and others at the John Hewitt suffering from self-doubt. Through the intense Friday afternoon discussions over the past four years, Harry, among others, encouraged me to carry on and gave me great insights, thoughts to consider and criticisms I could not ignore. I must also mention Frank, Beef, Joe, Brendan, Joe, Kerry, Gerry, Kevin, Tom, Tommy, Marty, Mark, Danny, Laurence, Florence, Brenda, Andy and the many others who regularly meet at the Hewitt on a Friday afternoon. I hope I have left no one out.
I cannot leave out Mairead Collins. She was instrumental in helping me with the transcripts and without her aid I would still be doing them, and this book would be another few years down the road. Our mutual friend Margaret Hagan deserves mention also. We have worked together since 2006 with Margaret always providing critical and probing questions and forcing me to focus my argument.
Sarah McAuliffe-Bellin has been a great support through this. She has engaged me intellectually from the start and has given me the opportunity to present my research in America.
Louis Edmondson also deserves my thanks. His skeptical views and sharp questions forced me to ensure that my argument was a strong and valid one, and that it could hold up to the harshest criticisms.
I would also like to thank the staff of the Linen Hall Librarys Northern Ireland Political Collection and microfiche sections. They were a great help in getting the materials I needed for my research.
Two people who really deserve my thanks are Tony and Karen. Over the past four years, they have given me unlimited use of their house in Belfast and, more importantly, their friendship. Dennis also deserves thanks. In 2007, he provided me with a place to stay and introduced me to some people who became very important in the completion this book.
Special and heartfelt thanks to my brother Mike, sisters Rose and Anita, and especially my father, Tony, for support throughout my life and this project.
Special thanks to my roommates in Belfast in 2009, Erin Hinson, Lisa Monahan and Jasmine Kurjakovic. You were all wonderful and a great source of inspiration.
I must thank everyone at the University of Pittsburghs Department of History. The support I received in the department helped make this book possible. In particular, four individuals, Bernie Hagerty, Bill Chase, Rob Ruck and Reid Andrews deserve my appreciation for their help and support. In particular Bill, as he has done since I first met him in 1987, went above and beyond the call of duty. He took the entire manuscript, corrected punctuation, grammar and style, and pointed out inconsistencies and weaknesses while also providing very good suggestions for strengthening the book.
