Making Peace in Northern Ireland

This book examines the remarkable process that led to peace in Northern Ireland after decades of violence. That story lies in its granular history but equally in an appreciation of its psychological dynamics, especially the emergence in the social and political realm of what the author calls radical empathy. The leaders who made peace happen were all larger than life, figures out of some 19th Century opera strutting across the stage of history. But there was another hero in the mix, one often noted for his presence but not fully appreciated by scholarly observers for his contributions to the peace process: John Alderdice. The son of a moderate Presbyterian minister, a medical doctor, and a psychiatrist and psychoanalyst, Alderdice brought to the peace process his grasp of others, his generosity, and clarity of vision. The Northern Irish story is immensely complicated but in the end uplifting. They deserve the peace they have made for themselves. The story of the Troubles is horrifying, but the story of peacemaking is not just dramatic - it inspires hope. If the Irish can make peace, anyone can. That may be the most important lesson of this book. And that lesson is transferable.