Long Kesh and the Blanket Men

Today we went to the Long Kesh/H Block prison. This is where the hunger strikes took place. One of our tour guides was actually a prisoner who had been in prison during that time and escaped. He spoke about how difficult life was in prison. We visited the cells where the dirty protest took place and saw the stains and holes that were drilled into the walls to air the cell out. One of the most powerful things that I saw was the room where Bobby Sands died. He was the first hunger striker to die. Later that night we talked with men who were also in the prison during that time. One of them was even best friends with Bobby and spoke about what it was like the last time he saw him. They were extremely passionate about their views and felt that what they were doing was the right thing to do. They talked about how they are seeing small changes in the community and hopefully someday Ireland can be united. It was an extremely emotional experience to be a part of and I am very grateful for the experiences that I have had and the people that I have met.