The troubles of Ireland
...in Great Britain and The Irish Republic. Security and border patrols cost the Irish Republic over one-quarter of its annual salary. The economy has been greatly affected by the ongoing conflict. Manufacturing employment in Northern Ireland has declined by over 40% since the beginning of the conflict. The consent fear of bombings and high cost security drove the manufactures away very quickly. Education, neighborhoods, workplaces, entertainment, and numerous other social activities remained segregated. Like most cultural differences, the roots of the Protestant-Catholic in Northern Ireland are buried in the distant past. Recently, there has been a lot of change in Northern Ireland. Although the police force remains over 95% Protestant, Catholics have been making progress in ending some discrimination. For the first time a Catholic republican has been elected mayor. This would have been unthinkable in the past. The Catholic population is increasing while the Protestant population is decreasing. About 94% of the people in Ireland are Catholics, and less than 4% are Protestant. On Easter Sunday of 1916 a revolt took place in Dublin in front of the General Post Office. This was the opening act of the Irish War for Independence. The Irish had been under English rule for centuries and wanted it to end. Professor MacNeill was the leader of the Irish Brotherhood, a small organization that put this event together. There was little fighting on the first day since the British intelligence had failed hopelessly. When the Rising began the a...