IRA Man: Talking with the Rebels

This is the compelling story of a former Jesuit who traveled to Ireland in order to better understand the IRA, its widespread support among Irish Catholics, and the country's continuing civil unrest. Author Douglass McFerran, an American, made many key contacts in Northern Ireland, enabling him to gain unprecedented access to republican groups. He met with members of the Orange Lodge and the heavily armed Royal Ulster Constabulary; he had tea with leaders of Sinn Fein; and he participated in the annual Internment March on the streets of Belfast. In this book he provides a history of the conflict in Ireland and goes beyond the propaganda on both sides to understand the causes of today's violence and explore what would be necessary to end it.