Equal But Different?
Trevor Ringland has been on the Talkback programme within the last few minutes confirming his decision to resign from the Ulster Unionist party. As previously noted here the need to reach across communal barriers, especially in relation to sport has been a guiding principle for Mr Ringland for some time. So Tom Elliott's casual dismissal of attending GAA events was always guaranteed to alienate the former rugby international.
The audience response has been divided between those traditional unionists who regard Mr Ringland's All Ireland final ultimatum to Mr Elliott as "silly politics" and callers who think the former east Belfast candidate is ahead of his time.
In setting out his case, Mr Ringland argued that the UUP should be leading the opposition to what he called the DUP's tendency towards "managed segregation" of Northern Ireland society. That remark takes us back to the Stormont debate on the Cohesion, Sharing and Integration strategy at the end of last month. The debate saw the SDLP accusing Sinn Fein of preferring a "carve up before power sharing".
Today with a detailed critique of the OFMDFM's draft Cohesion, Sharing and Integration policy. The Rowntree analysis claims that, in comparison to the old "Shared Future" policy, the CSI strategy has jettisoned "reconcilaition", replacing it with "mutual accommodation". It also criticises the CSI strategy for moving away from "a fluid interpretation of culture" instead treating "culture and identity as though they are fixed and given entities." Rowntree argues that "this is a simplistic view, which fails to recognise the capacity of individuals and communities to make ongoing choices in ways which are open to influence and change. While this may suit political parties with a deeply rooted sense of conflicting priorities based on ethnic division, it overlooks the potential social benefit from processes that question traditional cultural identities."
The OFMDFM is currently consulting on its CSI strategy, with a deadline for responses at the end of this month.
P.S. (and this dates me) Who can name a 1980 single which features the words "Equal But Different" in its refrain?
I'm 
Comments