Woman from unionist background pledges her support for the Irish language at rally in Derry

A Derry woman from a unionist background has spoken publicly about her support for the Irish language.

Catherine Pollock, a local community worker, was among a number of people who addressed a rally in the city at the weekend which was organised in response to recent comments by DUP leader Arlene Foster about the Irish language.

At the launch earlier this month of her party campaign for the March 2 Assembly election, Mrs Foster said the DUP would never agree to an Irish Language Act to protect and develop the language.

Mrs Foster said if there was to be an Irish Language Act, there should be a Polish language act because more people in Northern Ireland speak Polish than Irish.

Referring to Sinn Fein demands, she told the campaign launch in Lurgan: "If you feed a crocodile, it will keep coming back for more."

Mrs Foster’s comment provoked widespread anger within the Irish language community and there have been a number of protests, the latest of which was held in Derry on Saturday.

Around 150 people gathered at Guildhall Square before walking to the An Culturlann Irish centre at Great James Street where a number of speakers addressed the crowd.

Mrs Pollock told the demonstrators that she came from a ‘very traditional unionist upbringing’.

“I was never exposed to the Irish language and I never had the opportunity to learn it,” she said.

“I first came into contact with a thriving Irish language community when I worked in the Gasyard and I worked beside Gaelscoil Eadhain Mhoir.

“I was amazed and inspired by all these small bi-lingual human beings who at seven and eight years old could speak two languages.

“They were thriving and they were confident and I had the privilege of seeing them go through school for quite a number of years.”

Mr Pollock said she now wanted her own two children to be educated through the medium of Irish.

She said her oldest child has started a Surestart Irish language programme and that she had applied for him to enrol at a local Irish language nursery school later this year.

“I want his rights to be protected. I want him to be able to be educated in an immersive Irish language environment.

“I am also very proud to work on a project which is opening up the Irish language to communities all across the North.

“I have been amazed by the diverse community which comes into Culterlann. There are Irish speakers of all ages, all genders from all arts and parts of this island and I am amazed at the number who come in and are able to speak it.

“The language is thriving and I am so excited to be involved in it and so excited to be learning it and I am looking forward to my children’s future learning it and I want it protected.”

Speaking at Saturday’s protest, Sinn Fein Foyle MLA Raymond McCartney said his party viewed the rights of Irish language speakers as a ‘civil right’.

“It is an issue of equality and something which we will promote. During this election campaign we have made it one of the issues.

“On behalf of Sinn Fein we pledge our support for an Irish Language Act.

“When we said when we collapsed the Assembly it was around the issues of rights, dignity and respect, we go in to this election to ensure those rights will be protected and previous agreements will be implemented.”

Local SDLP MLA Mark H Durkan also told the protestors that they had the support of his party.

“No one of us owns the Irish language it belongs to us all as does the Irish culture.

“We are in full support of an Irish Language Act.

“The only way we are going to progress this issue is through parties working together and I give you and those not her my commitment and my party’s commitment to work with all parties to ensure that the rights of Irish language speakers become a reality.”