Being a African woman residing in this part of the UK, Maureen Hamblin understands that racism manifests in a multitude of ways. “It isn't just public displays of violence,” she explains. “It is often subtle and unspoken.”
Individuals who overhear prejudiced statements and stay silent inadvertently intensify the injury, causing the affected to feel alone and isolated. This recurring experience exhausted Hamblin emotionally. “There was a time when I’d lost much of my faith in Caucasian individuals, particularly men.”
Race riots in various Northern Irish towns and cities in recent years might have extinguished her final hopes, but instead, Hamblin, who hails from Kenya, found a source of hope.
She participated in an project known as the Change Circle, which connects strangers from diverse backgrounds – wealthy and impoverished, of different ethnicities, gay and straight – and tasks them with a unconventional activity: taking the time to understand one another.
“It gave me back my optimism. It made us all see our shared humanity.” – Maureen Hamblin
Annually, a different cohort of roughly twelve people assembles and gathers for monthly gatherings across the city to share personal stories and raise funds for charities that champion acceptance and healing.
Hamblin recounted incidents involving racist abuse with her circle – its members reacted with shock – and learned from their own varied stories. Certain members came from privilege, while others had faced poverty and isolation. All recognised a powerful commonality: Belfast was their home, and it should be a welcoming one.
The Origin of a Grassroots Trust
The aforementioned initiative is the innovation of a community trust operating from the historically divided community of north Belfast, an interface of traditionally divided housing estates that witnessed deadly strife in the past. Housed within a repurposed place of worship, it supplies clothing and support to vulnerable people and acts as a focal point for the arts community.
The charity started the inaugural group in 2018 with the express aim of tackling polarisation, said its chief executive. “We try to build a small-scale model of Belfast in each group. The purpose is to break down preconceptions.”
Personal Journeys
One founding member ended up meeting fellow members in places, such as an local food bank, a world away from her previous life experience. “Many places I’d never set foot in. The greater our initial discomfort, the happier they [the organisers] were,” she remembers, laughing.
Another member, hailing from a working-class Protestant background, acquired a deeper understanding on homelessness after conversations with a young member who had experienced rough sleeping to escape a difficult home life. “It made me realise how lucky I was to have a support system that I could rely on.”
She also describes her shock when another member, originally from an African nation, explained how white youths regularly threw dog excrement at her children. “Her tone wasn't particularly emotional, her tone was detached. The story was profoundly saddening.”
The initial 2018 circle managed to raise £50,000 for educational activities for children of color – an accomplishment that feels all the more poignant given the later outbreak of inter-ethnic strife. “There is a tradition here of ‘say nothing’,” the chief executive commented, quoting a poetic reference. “Few people understood at that time the extent to which racist attitudes were. But when the unrest occurred they were less of a surprise to us because of what we had heard.”
Building Bridges With Music and Connection
When Maureen Hamblin joined the 2024 cohort, she despaired at the pervasive “onlooker apathy”. Even in her place of worship, which was outwardly progressive, insensitive statements were met with silence. “When others say nothing it’s like being invalidated twice over.”
She nevertheless forged a meaningful relationship with peers in the circle, especially with a fellow member who recounted an experience about confronting prejudice – at the risk of a physical confrontation – in a fast-food outlet. Hamblin, who finds solace in singing, and her new friend, an noted peace activist, joined forces to create literary readings and songs for social media.
“It was once believed that the conflict would never end, that peace would never come. Yet it finally emerged. Things can turn around.” – A Circle of Change Participant
The latest cohort directed its fundraising efforts to support a special project called Music Translated, which teaches folk music from Ireland to weekly classes evenly divided between people from overseas and long-term inhabitants.
“Artistic expression can overcome communication hurdles and fosters a feeling of unity and inclusion,” said the scheme's coordinator. “A participant confided he’d never before understood that individuals of another faith could be so much fun.”
While these sessions are swimming against the tide – with racially motivated crimes in Northern Ireland registering the most significant numbers recently – that is precisely the reason to persist with them, organisers believe. “That is the reason such programs matter.”
The underlying message from these community efforts is one of optimism via engagement. Thousands of ordinary people helped bring about the end of political violence through small, individual acts, one organiser reflected. “This offers a blueprint. I have no control over what happens at an international level, but I can show up locally and contribute positively at a personal level. It is my sincere belief that’s the origin of true transformation.”
