There is a lot of bad human rights news about — torture centers in Syria, the continuing and cinematic viciousness of Mexico’s drug cartels and the country’s deeply corrupt institutions, North Carolina’s repeal of a key aspect of the Racial Justice Act. Each is absorbing and scandalous, and excellent people are bringing these abuses to light and working to correct them.
BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND – JUNE 27: Queen Elizabeth II shakes hands with Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland Martin McGuinness watched by First Minister Peter Robinson (C) at the Lyric Theatre on June 27, 2012 in Belfast, Northern Ireland. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)
But may I pause for a little sliver of good news? The tiniest, narrowest sliver, glowing a kind of goldeny lime-green? It was this handshake (right), which took place on June 27 in the halls of Northern Ireland’s parliament at Stormont.
What’s in a handshake? Centuries of conflict, decades of violence, a province still sectioned into theirs and ours. Deaths, rocks and petrol bombs. Walls. And a people brave and thoughtful enough to look forward. The handshake is a symbol, to be sure. Much more needs to be done to investigate and account for the past, and invest in the futures of the people most harmed by “The Troubles.”
But symbols mater, especially when we seek to measure the impact of human rights advocacy, diplomacy and humanitarian intervention. As we bear down on another July 12 (the culmination of Northern Ireland’s marching season, with its predictable rise in tensions and clashes), we need to contemplate what might have been had many people not insisted on a different path. Most of the credit, of course, goes to the people of Northern Ireland, who every day vote with their feet as they increasingly support
Too often, pundits measure these things only by the sites where they failed (Syria right now, the Congo, North Korea, Afghanistan). Certainly, it’s fundamental to look at failure; but not exclusively. We must also examine where and how things ultimately went right (or are going in the right direction, as no one would claim that the conflict in Northern Ireland is completely or even mostly settled). Too often, public opinion is of the opinion that “nothing works” so why bother?
So when things do work, with much effort and patience, the examples are worth noting — and peacefully celebrating.
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