It was a bit confusing at first, when we arrived. It appeared to us that we were in a Palestinian Terrorist Museum. A museum attempting to legitimize Islamism and it's murderous ideology. Having two friends( an unarmed couple in their 60's ,she was from Argentina and he was French,) assassinated by the terrorists,I was put off by the display of open support for terrorism. This takes away the attention to the central theme of the museum, the legitimate struggle of the citizen's of Derry. Learned a lot about the history of N. Ireland and it's people. We had been traveling all over the Island for the last month and Derry is such a beautiful city. To clarify, I'm not a right wing lunatic nor a bigot. I love freedom and democracy. But I also believe that you have such an important story to tell, and that story is being clouded by your open display of admiring terrorists. September 7th, 2023 was the day that innocent people died in the name of NOTHING. Hamas is a religious, fundamentalist group. You are staining the IRA by aligning with these monsters, wanting to become martyrs in the name of Allah. This ideology does not discriminate, most of the people killed by Hamas were peace loving people. Hamas sees you guys and me as infidels, they are not a secular nationalist movement!! No room for LGBTBQ movement people, no room for atheists, non room for democratic loving citizens. Their goal is the creation of a Caliphate ruled under the Shaharia Law, While you and me use democracy and freedom to enhance our lives, they use it to spread hate and death. and the destruction of the "infidels"(you and me). Please, do not be the usual idiots being used for their purpose. Democracy and freedom is being used to be self destroyed. While you and me use freedom to enhance our lives, they use it to spread terrorism and hate.The museum belongs to the people of the Derry, not to any other group, let alone a group that has their hands tainted with...
Read moreFeel somewhat ashamed that I've reached the age of 60, and never really got to grips with what The Troubles were all about. As I teenager I remembered the bombs in Coventry & Birmingham in the mid 70s . When I watched Peaky Blinders I remember thinking that I hadn't realised that the IRA was a 'thing' back then at the turn of the century. But it wasn't until I started researching a road tour around Ireland ( The Wild Atlantic Way ) that I started to get an idea about what had preceded in the history of the island, and the root causes of the problem. Whilst researching (London)Derry , the names of places / streets / people who'd been common on the news during The Troubles were seen, and I decided that a visit to The Museum of Free Derry was somewhere I needed to go to. So very glad I did, as couldn't have asked for a better explanation , and done in such powerful, moving and thought provoking ways. I left with an enlightened view and different perspective, and when went outside and saw the various landmarks associated with this area, and Bloody Sunday , it was incredibly...
Read moreThis museum tells an important story in the ongoing struggle for human rights. I would especially encourage visitors from outside of Ireland/Northern Ireland to include a trip to the museum as part of your visit to Derry. We were visiting from the U.S., and to be honest, I had doubts about whether I we should go to the museum or even to Derry - mostly because of my own ignorance. I didn't want to be a stupid tourist or ask a question that offended anyone. But that is what travel and museums are all about - to educate. Derry is a very interesting place, and I would rate our stay there - and the visit to this museum in particular - as one of the great highlights of our trip. During our visit, we met two persons who survived Bloody Sunday and lost good friends or family in this horrific attack. Their firsthand accounts and willingness to answer our questions are so very appreciated. The museum exhibits are well presented personal stories. Please include this place in your travels - this is a story which...
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