Dublin Orangemen ‘put record straight’ on U2 Bono’s neighbourhood after Jon Bon Jovi gaffe
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
He was speaking after US rock star Jon Bon Jovi said in a recent interview that he had enjoyed a comfortable childhood and had not had to endure what he falsely believed was the sectarian threat in the U2 singer’s childhood.
“His upbringing was obviously very different than mine,” Bon Jovi said. “I never had the Orangemen walking through my neighbourhood saying, you know, get the Catholic kid and beat him up.”
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdHis comments caused no little mirth on social media because people across the island thought them so fanciful.
Bono – or Paul Hewson – had a Catholic father and Protestant mother, attended the multi-denominational Mount Temple Secondary School and reportedly attended Church of Ireland services growing up.
Speaking to the News Letter yesterday, Chris Thackerberry of Dublin and Wicklow LOL 1313 said the misconceptions in Bon Jovi’s comments were even deeper than most people realised.
Far from being a Catholic child enduring sectarian violence from Protestants in his neighbourhood, he said, Bono’s family would have been very much integrated into the Protestant community.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“I just found it funny because I knew of Orange brethren living in that area where Bono grew up.” His mother was Church of Ireland and, as such, the mixed couple qualified for housing in Finlas Park.
“To get one of those houses you had to be a Protestant or you had to be part of a parish life.”
He said the houses in that area were built by the Church of Ireland as social housing for the Protestant working class. “But there were a number of Orangemen lived in there.”
It was quite likely that his family would have known the Orangemen in the tiny estate personally, he said.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdBut far from Orangemen inflicting sectarian violence on others in Dublin, the reality was almost exactly the opposite, he said; The last Orange parade in 1932 was attacked by stone throwing mobs.
He also noted that Mount Temple Secondary School which Bono attended would be seen as co-educational “but it is a Church of Ireland ethos school”.
His lodge has about 40 members.
“The majority of Dublin people are more curious about Orangeism than aggressive. However if we were to organise a formal parade then the mob would be out with threats towards us.”
Jon Bon Jovi knows nothing of Orange tradition, Ireland, Dubin and Bono’s background, writes Limerick OrangemanJon Bon Jovi’s Orangemen-beat-up-Bono-gaffe sparks U2 ‘alternative facts’ trend
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdA message from the Editor:
Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.
With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.
Subscribe to newsletter.co.uk and enjoy unlimited access to the best Northern Ireland and UK news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Visit https://www.newsletter.co.uk/subscriptions now to sign up.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdOur journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them. By supporting us, we are able to support you in providing trusted, fact-checked content for this website.
Alistair Bushe
Editor