"I didn't realise how many of these peace walls were still fixed structures in Belfast, says Gaskin. As an Irish person, to be so ignorant on that stuff shocked me, including how it physically affects people's movement through the city. The physical structures play into the mental thing: We're separated.' Schools are segregated. People don't generally mix. There are tensions between Catholics and Protestants, Gaskin adds."
"So, in the wake of the riots, she spent four years visiting the city, documenting youth clubs, boxing gyms, dance groups and teenagers hanging out on the street. I learned these kids are just being normal teenagers, says Gaskin. There are experiences that are different they come from areas with a lot of historic violence. But people are going about their everyday life. It's very normal."
Riots in Belfast in 2021 involved mainly young loyalists and republicans and prompted extended photographic documentation of youth life. Photographer Hazel Gaskin spent four years visiting Belfast to document youth clubs, boxing gyms, dance groups and teenagers on the street, focusing on less affluent areas. Peace walls and peace gates remain fixed structures that shape physical movement and contribute to mental separation. Schools are segregated and communities generally do not mix, with tensions between Catholics and Protestants. Additional pressures such as social mobility and poverty also affect this generation, yet many young people lead ordinary everyday lives.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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