Graduation Year
2025
Date of Submission
12-2025
Document Type
Campus Only Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
History
Reader 1
Professor Lisa Cody
Terms of Use & License Information
Rights Information
2025 Maggie O Griffis
Abstract
This thesis examines the experiences of children during the Troubles and the lasting impacts of a childhood experienced under guerrilla warfare. After the outbreak of violence in 1969, Northern Ireland plunged into relentless violence between the predominantly Catholic Republicans who sought to reunite Ireland as one and end British rule, and Protestants Loyalists who remained loyal to the British Crown. The violence that occurred was all-encompassing as it swept throughout the cities and neighborhoods, blurring the lines between participants and civilians. The consequences of growing up in an environment of inescapable violence were immense. The lack of stability, the omnipresence of military forces, and the witnessing of bombings, shootings, street violence, kidnappings, and threats led to complex forms of PTSD that disrupted normal emotional development. Today, in Northern Ireland, segregation remains deeply ingrained: children continue to attend largely separate schools, neighborhoods remain divided along sectarian lines, and towering peace walls still separate communities. Cultural healing and reconciliation of violence and a deep sectarian divide in Northern Ireland cannot be measured solely by the cessation of gunfire. Healing requires more than structures of governance; it demands attention to the trauma and the lived experiences of those who survived the conflict and those who inherited its aftermath
Recommended Citation
Griffis, Margaret, "Growing up in The Troubles: Religion, Violence, and Unity" (2025). CMC Senior Theses. 4306.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/4306
This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.
